Travis     & Farleigh    

This is not a small town law firm. They are two California wine brands produced by Hand Picked Selections. The two projects are very different, but variety is good in both wine and life. There is only one wine for each brand. Both wines are distinctive, full of flavor and character.

That is where the similarities end. Travis has been made for 17 years. 2004 is Farleigh’s first vintage. Travis is a Chardonnay from a single vineyard. Farleigh is a Zinfandel from two widely separated vineyards. Travis is a cold climate wine. Farleigh is a blend of warm and cool climate wines.

California Chardonnay

This is a rarity. Only a tiny percentage of consumers have tasted pure California Chardonnay. Most consumers know the flavors of tropical fruit (from Chardonnay clones developed at UC Davis), butter (from malolactic fermentation), oak (from barrels or chips) and residual sugar. California Chardonnay unmasked by these flavors is different.

Travis Chardonnay, Monterey Unfiltered

The grapes come from Riverview Vineyard, 350 acres at the foot of the Gavilan Mountains in the Salinas Valley. One 25 acre parcel was planted by Paul Masson in 1968 to the fine Spring Mountain Chardonnay clone. Most California Chardonnay vineyards are planted to Davis (tropical, tutti-fruity) clones but older, more distinctive clones are not rare.

At a time when most California vineyards were planted at 400 vines per acre, this parcel was planted at 640. At 37 years production would be low anyway, but many of the vines are virused, reducing yields further without affecting quality. The owning Scheid family is improving the vineyard. Cuttings have been taken from the best, healthiest vines. These cuttings have been interplanted. Once the new plantings are established and producing, the virused older vines will be uprooted and replaced. By 2012 the vineyard will be in full production with 1280 vines per acre.

Travis Chardonnay, Monterey Unfiltered – Terroir

The quality of Travis Chardonnay comes from Riverview’s terroir. ‘Terroir’ refers to the sum of the conditions under which grapes are grown. It includes soil, subsoil, slope, exposition, temperature, rainfall, etc.

The vineyard slopes northwest at 4º. The soil is sandy loam with calcium. The Gavilan mountains to the East protect it from intense morning sun. The Salinas River runs northwest to a gap in the hills. That gap allows the river to reach the ocean. What’s important is that the gap also allows ocean air to reach the vineyard, making Riverview one of California’s coldest vineyards.

The owning Scheid family use high-tech equipment to record what happens in their vineyards. I have daily climate data from Riverview going back 7 years. Every year there is a bizarre temperature spike the first half of June, with mid-afternoon temperatures hitting 100º. This lasts only a day or two. From mid-June on, temperatures rarely reach 90º! As a result the harvest is as late as in any white wine vineyard in California, on average October 12th.

Travis Chardonnay, Monterey Unfiltered – Grapes Into Wine

Sugar at harvest is usually 25 brix, or just under 15% alcohol. I love the full ripeness. The problem with high sugars can be low acidity. With Riverview’s cold climate and long growing season, grape acidity is high and stays high in the finished wine. Travis is among the minority of California Chardonnays that does not go through malolactic fermentation (malolactic fermentation changes malic apple acid into lactic milk acid; thus the buttery flavor of many Chardonnays). Malolactic fermentation rarely occurs naturally in California. Chardonnays are inoculated for it. Travis is not inoculated, keeping refreshing apple acidity and avoiding buttery flavors.

There is nothing inherently wrong with oak in many wines, but too often the use of oak has grown into abuse. Fruit is submerged and a generation of consumers have grown up confusing the flavors of wine and oak. The subtle, rich flavors of the Spring Mountain clone need no oak, so no barrels or chips are employed. The wine is fermented in tank and left on its lees until bottling.

Finally, many California Chardonnays are bottled with residual sugar. Most people can detect sugar at 1/2 of 1%. Many inexpensive Chardonnays are bottled at this level, or even up to 2%. Not Travis.

Travis Chardonnay, Monterey Unfiltered – the Wine

This is an aromatic Chardonnay - cold climate and cool fermentation preserve the aromas. On the palate the wine is rich, muscular, lively and powerful. Nothing masks the subtle flavors of cold climate fruit. The finish is long and refreshing, as the brilliant bracing acidity lingers on the palate. Wine should be distinctive as well as good. I don’t want to call this great wine - I’m not objective. I can say that it is one of the most distinctive California Chardonnays. I like to think it is one of the best.

Charles Underwood Farleigh Zinfandel

The name Zinfandel comes from a red Austrian varietal, Zierfandler. The actual varietal has nothing to do with Zierfandler and has been identified as Italy’s Primativo which is also Croatia’s Plavac. It has found its best home in California.

I love Zinfandel and have long wanted to produce and sell one. The opportunity came with the fine 2004 vintage.

Two medium-sized wineries in California each own substantial Zinfandel acreage. Both bottle it as a varietal, but neither considers it one of their core wines. Both were happy to consider producing some wine from their Estate grapes for bulk sale.

One is in Amador, home to some of California’s oldest and finest Zinfandels. This is a hot climate. Grapes from two ancient, low-yielding parcels produced a powerful, earthy wine truly expressive of Amador’s terroir.

The other is in Mendocino, on the cusp between the extremely hot vineyards north of Ukiah in the Redwood Valley and the cold-climate Anderson Valley to the west. A younger vineyard of modest yields gives us a ripe, fruit-driven example of Zinfandel.

The Amador component on its own was fine, but a little too powerful and alcoholic for my taste. The Mendocino component had splendid fruit but lacked some of the weight I love in Zinfandel. A 50/50 blend was just right, as good as Goldilocks’ porridge. The wine was bottled young to capture the fresh fruit and none of it was subjected oak ageing. That’s one more thing it has in common with Travis Chardonnay.