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Trefethen
Visiting California's Napa Valley, part 6
Website:
www.trefethen.com
My second full day in Napa began at
Trefethen, in the Oak Knoll district. It was another beautiful
morning, and I was meeting with John Ruel (above) – like
me, another lapsed scientist (he'd done research on plant ecology in
a previous life). John was a great host.
Trefethen is a large family-owned
property of 440 acres of vineyard, planted on the valley floor. The
family purchased the propety in 1968, with its run-down three storey,
gravity flow winery that was built in 1886. It’s a big vineyard,
and produces more than is needed for the Trefethen wines, so around
a third of the crop is sold each year. Located in the southern part
of the valley, the afternoons are quite cool here because of the
proximity of the bay. ‘We’re in between Cabernet country and
Pinot Noir country,’ explains John.
As well as this main ranch, Trefethen
have a 140 acre property (with 40 acres of vines) in the foothills
of the Mayacamas mountains, not far away. This is Hillspring.
‘On the main ranch there isn’t much
climatic variation,’ says John, ‘butv there are lots of
differences with soil types.’ The more gravelly bits from alluvial
fans are better suited to Cabernet, while Chardonnay prefers the
more fertile sections with deeper clay loam soils. There's also a
fair bit of Riesling here (some was still on the vine with botrytis,
for making a sweet wine), as well as some Pinot Noir that is sold to
sparkling producers. John is quite excited about the prospects for
Malbec here.
The Hillspring property (above),
tucked into the hills, has more rocky, less fertile soils and is
also warmer by a few degrees. It's really beautiful. The soils are
of mixed origin: mostly volcanic, but also sandstone and shale.
Sustainability is a big issue for John,
and he's working hard to make the vineyards as naturally farmed as
possible. As well as a large compost heap, there's a large array of
572 solar panels supplying 20% of the winery's needs.
‘Each vine is touched by hand nine
times a year,’ says John. ‘Our employees are an important
resource, and they get a full benefit package. We try to take good
care of them.’
There’s an owl post. John points out
that a family of owls can munch their way through 2500
damage-causing gophers in a year. They have also installed bat
boxes, with 250 bats in each, to help keep the moth population down.
The European grape vine moth has just arrived in Napa, which is
potentially a big problem. It was probably introduced by someone
trying to smuggle something in.
Botrytised Riesling
The wines? They're solidly good. The
Riesling is attractive, fresh and limey, and the Chardonnay is
restrained and appealing, with a light touch of oak. The Merlot is
well defined and supple, while the Cabernet is a bit richer, but
still made in a bright, digestible and fruit-focused style. There's
no hint of over-ripeness or excess here, and the wines are better
for it. The 2005 Reserve is largely from the Hillspring property and
shows lovely rich aromatics with a concentrated, ripe forward
palate. It's a big wine, but it shows restraint with it.
THE
WINES
Trefethen Dry Riesling 2008
Quite fresh and bright with nice lemony fruit. Crisp and
appealing. The palate is bright and lemony with nice crispness, and
a hint of mineral on the finish. 87/100
Trefethen Chardonnay 2007
20 000 cases produced. Nice rich fruit on the nose with a hint
of fig, as well as peach and pear notes. The palate is generous,
rich and fruit with just a hint of toasty oak. Creamy and
soft-textured. 88/100
Trefethen Merlot 2005
$30 retail. Attractive sweet, focused nose with lovely
blackberry and blackcurrant fruit. Focused, fresh palate is smooth
but well defined with black fruits and a nice spicy edge. Supple,
ripe and balanced. 89/100
Trefethen Cabernet Sauvignon 2002
(library release)
Fruit is all from main ranch. Very attractive, intense dark
fruits on the nose with hints of mint and olive, as well as a
brooding earthy character. The palate is fresh with lovely depth of
blackcurrant fruit and a hint of mint. Showing a bit of evolution
with nice tannins and some complexity. 92/100
Trefethen Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
$50 retail, 7000 cases. Beautifully focused blackcurrant fruit
nose is attractive and pure with freshness and some spicy depth. The
palate shows appealing fresh blackcurrant fruit with lovely
supporting tannins. Structured but approachable with nice fruit
focus. 92/100
Trefethen Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
2005
$100, 1000 cases, predominantly from the Hillspring property.
Lovely aromatics: complex, sweet, spicy fruit with some floral
notes. Really enticing with savoury complexity. The palate is
concentrated and rich with warm, spicy blackcurrant fruit as well as
richness and intensity. There is some oak, but it is well
integrated. An intense, ripe, warm spicy style with firm tannic
structure offsetting the sweet fruit well. 93/100
NAPA
VALLEY SERIES
 Photos
from Napa Valley
 Part
1, Cain
 Part 2, Schramsberg
 Part 3, Corison
 Part
4, Saintsbury
 Part
5, Lagier Meredith
 Part
6, Trefethen
 Part
7, Trinchero
 Part
8, Grgich Hills
 Part
9, Cakebread
Wines
tasted as 11/09
Find these wines with wine-searcher.com
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