© 1996 JDM Enterprises
100 Point Wineby Jerry D. MeadYou probably read you first review of a Ferrari-Carano wine in this column. I was first to write about the wines about a month before they debuted just ten years ago. If you read that rave review, the ones I've written since and put them alongside what I'm about to write today...you might justifiably suspect that I own stock in the company. Not true. F-C is owned by the Carano family of Reno, Nevada (they own the Eldordao Hotel). My lead is almost always the same, as wonderful as they have been before, F-C wines just keep getting better. I'm almost embarrassed to say it once again, because it just doesn't seem possible for one winery to have achieved so much, in so short a time, and to keep improving what already seems "world class." That success is truly a team effort. Don Carano is no absentee owner, is dedicated to quality and has the financial wherewithal to make it happen. He gives winemaker George Bursick every tool he needs (especially great grapes and the finest cooperage every year) to make great wine. And vineyard manager Barney Fernandez is equally blessed...Carano buys great vineyard land, including two or three entire mountains that are being transformed into huge vineyards. Fernandez need only use his many years of viticultural expertise to match the right vines to the right soil and micro-climate. F-C has also become one of those destination wineries to visit, with its formal European style gardens, it's Villa Fiore tasting room and visitor center, underground barrel cellar and manicured grounds worthy of some castle of royalty. Credit Rhonda Carano (Mrs. Don), whose love of flowers and eye for decorating make the F-C hospitality the equal of its wines. The wines have national distribution and production is relatively large for wines of this quality level, but demand is so high that they can still be difficult to find. The winery may be able to help you track down a local outlet: Ferrari-Carano Winery, 8761 Dry Creek Rd., Healdsburg, CA 95448 (707) 433-6700. F-C 1995 "Sonoma" Fume Blanc ($11) One of the most popular wines on restaurant wine lists and always on allocation. It's partial barrel-fermentation shows through as a subtle oak vanillin quality, while the fruit is mild citrus (grapefruit, lemon and a hint of lime). Refreshing. Lovely companion to a piece of halibut. Rating: 89/90 F-C 1995 Fume Blanc Reserve ($14) Wonderful! Delicious! This variety just doesn't get much better in California. Super intense citrus-melon-honeysuckle, with undertones of new French oak. Great with swordfish or Dover sole; big enough to handle lobster. Rating: 96/90 F-C 1994 "Alexander Valley" Chardonnay ($20) Very ripe pineapple and other tropical fruits, maybe even a little banana oil; very buttery rich. A hedonistic wine that tastes as good all by itself as it would with a great piece of Northwest salmon. Rating: 90/84 F-C 1993 "Reserve" Chardonnay ($27) Sure it's expensive, but it's everything you expect in a wine called "Reserve." Produced from 60 percent Napa fruit and 40 percent Sonoma, the flavors, related to both fruit and wood, are similar to the "Alexander Valley" Chardonnay, but even richer and more intense and with very long after flavors. Rating: 94/84 F-C 1994 "Tre Terre" Chardonnay ($24) My favorite of the three Chardonnays, it is entirely from Alexander Valley, but from three distinctly different microclimates. These three separate vineyards each contribute unique qualities to the ultimate blend, and when combined with fermentation in 100 percent new French oak barrels, the end result is dramatic. It shares the rich tropical flavors that F-C Chardonnays are so well known for, but there are also earthy-mineral-flinty undertones that make it more interesting to me. The new oak provides a roasty-toasty aftertaste. Rating: 96/86 F-C 1992 "Sonoma" Cabernet Sauvignon ($22) Earthy blackberry aromas and flavors with cedar, toast, smoke and truffle. Big and very intense. Definitely a wine that will improve with cellaring. Rating: 89/84 F-C 1991 Reserve Red ($47) This marvelous Meritage-style wine is the best yet...even better than the magnificent 1989. A blend of 65 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 20 percent Malbec and the remaining 15 percent varying portions of Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it will set on the table with "first growth" Bordeaux and hold its own. Intense mountain fruit in the black cherry, blackberry, cassis range, made more interesting by very smoky flavors from lengthy contact with new heavy char French oak barrels. Rich people should buy cases...us poor folks should buy a single bottle for the experience or a special occasion. Rating: 98/85 F-C 1995 "Eldorado Gold" ($18 the half bottle) A blend of heavily Botrytised (the beneficial mold that turns grapes to raisins on the vine) Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon in equal proportions, it is an ambrosial delight that will get even better with several years bottle age. What does it taste like? Peaches, pears, lichee, kumquat, apricot and honey. Pour it on your lover and lick it off! Or pour it on you and... Rating: 92/84
BEST BUY WINE OF THE WEEKF-C 1994 "Sonoma" Zinfandel ($16) The quintessential Zinfandel at a price that makes sense. From 60 percent Dry Creek Valley fruit, blended to Russian River and other prime Sonoma regions, it is big and intense with deep red and black raspberry flavors and that earthy bramble-berry quality with a hint of black and white pepper spice. It avoids overripeness and high alcohol and should please both Zin audiences...those who like 'em really big and those who prefer balance and elegance. Scheduled for a Sept. 1 release, it won't last long. Reserve some through your favorite retailer or call the winery. My highest score of 1996. Rating: 100/90
Wines are scored using a unique 100 point system. First number rates quality; second number rates value. For a reprint explaining the scoring system in depth and a pocket scoring guide, send $1 to: Mead's 100 Points, P.O. Box 1598, Carson City, NV 89702-1598.
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