2008-07-19
JACUZZI FAMILY WINERY
by Richard Paul Hinkle
The place is a palace. A rustic Italian palace, with exquisite stonework and an understated style that is perfect for the southernmost aspect of Sonoma County, the Carneros. Once given over to grazing sheep – carnero is the Spanish word for “ram” – the bay-cooled region was, decades ago, found by Louis Martini and Beaulieu to be ideal for cool-climate varieties like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Fred Cline, whose summer visits to his grandparents in Oakley (Contra Costa County, east of Antioch) piqued his interest in wine, studied ag science and management at Davis with an eye to simply getting into agriculture. “Making things grow, producing something,” as he so adroitly puts it.
“My grandfather, Valeriano Jacuzzi, had a great love of the land and of his family,” adds Cline passionately. “He bought the Oakley ranch in 1924, he worked hard during the day, and he enjoyed his glass of wine with his evening meal. At thirteen, I learned to make wine at his knee. After he died, my grandmother took out the permit, as ‘head of household,’ so that I could continue doing that.”
After college Fred started Cline Cellars at Oakley with a modest inheritance from his grandparents, moving that winery west to the southwest edge of Carneros in 1991. To honor his grandfather – yes, Jacuzzi invented the spas and pumps that bear his name – Cline began producing wines under the Jacuzzi label in 1994. The elegant eponymous new winery was opened, across the highway from Cline Cellars, in 2007.
“The second winery was built to honor the whole of the Jacuzzi family, for their industry, for their commitment to the land and to their families,” he explains. “They came to this country from Udine, Italy, and my grandfather and his brothers worked the mines, worked on the railroads, worked on anything they could to support their families. The oldest brother was into aerodynamics, and designed a laminated airplane propeller that was widely in use. They even tried designing a couple of airplanes … but that didn’t go quite so well. They really hit their stride when they came up with a new way of pumping water.”
All of that energy and industriousness has served Cline well, first at Cline Cellars, now with Jacuzzi Family Vineyards. He also runs Green String Farm in Petaluma, which provides naturally-grown (no chemicals) vegetables that are sold directly to the consumer. The wines, under the artful direction of winemaker Charlie Tsegeletos, are equally notable.
Chardonnay 2006 Sonoma County “Bianco di Sei Sorelle” ($20): Pale gold in color, this wine has brisk hazelnut and anise character up front, with an oily texture and grapefruit and melon fruit essence. This would be great with grilled chicken. I especially like the squat, stubby bottle employed for this wine (and the Merlot). It looks so solid, so grounded. (The wine is a tribute to “six sisters” who came here from Italy to find a better life.)
Pinot Noir 2006 Carneros Estate ($24): Ah, the smell of meat and mushrooms. You get that in a cool-climate Pinot Noir, and you are completely set up for the rare filet mignon with all the trimmings. This beauty shows that and more, with a hint of black cherry and graham from the French oak. A 12-hour roasted lamb would be good, too.
Merlot 2005 Sonoma Coast “Rosso di Sette Fratelli” ($20): Black currant and dark chocolate, always a nice combination in Merlot. There’s a little black cherry and graham in there, too, but it’s the currant and the chocolate that drive this wine. Barbecued ribs. (Yes, this one honors the seven Jacuzzi brothers who built the family spa company from nothing.)
Primitivo 2006 Lake County, Morine Ranch ($22): Raspberry and black pepper define this crisply-evoked red, made from the variety once thought to be Zinfandel’s closest European ancestor (from the “boot” of Italy). The Cline’s suggest roast duck with this. Roast duck is always high on my list, but this one would be equally at home on a picnic blanket. (Tall, broad-shouldered bottle, with an extra wide flared base. Solid packaging.)
Sangiovese 2005 Sonoma County ($24): This Italian variety (Tuscany: Brunello, Chianti) is starting to catch on here, and this one advances the cause with rich, ripe strawberry fruit and a tantalizing chocolate framework. And that’s just the aromatics. Taste the pomegranate and cranberry when you reach the palate, with its black pepper edge. Pretty good. Salisbury steak.
Valeriano 2005 Carneros Estate ($48): This wine is Jacuzzi’s homage to the Bordeaux blend, the wine a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon (41%), Merlot (31%), Cabernet Franc (18%), Malbec (9%) and Petit Verdot (1%). Deep cassis fruit, with cigar box spiciness, this elegant wine is perfectly-suited to that T-bone steak you’ve been meaning to grill.
Jacuzzi Family Vineyards is located at 24724 Arnold Drive, Sonoma. The tasting room is open daily 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. There is no tasting fee. For further information phone (707) 931-7575 or visit the web site at jacuzziwines.com.
[Hinkle’s ninth wine book – Clos Pegase: The Architecture of Wine – is due out any minute now. Wait, there it is! He can be reached at rphinkle@sonic.net.]
Related Information
|
