Located in the Glen Ellen area of Sonoma Valley, Benziger is the ultimate family-operated winery. Founded by the late Bruno Benziger and several of his sons, soon the entire family was involved, Mama Benziger, daughters, daughters and sons in-law, grandchildren, the entire clan, many of them living in a compound near the winery.

They are the folks who created the hugely successful Glen Ellen brand of value wines before selling out to Heublein Inc., while retaining their estate vineyards and the premium Benziger and Imagery brands.

The wines have broad national distribution. To track down specific wines contact the winery directly: (800) 989-8890; E-mail: benziger@wco.com; www.benziger.com

Benziger 1998 "Sonoma" Fume Blanc ($11) Mildly herbaceous aromatics; more aggressive lemon grass flavors. Tart; bone dry. Excellent oyster wine. Rating: 88/87

Benziger 1998 "Carneros" Chardonnay ($13) Very appealing aromas...oak vanillin and mildly tropical fruits. The barrel-fermented wine has flavors more in the apple, citrus vein, with some tropical undertones. Rating: 89/88

Benziger 1997 "Sonoma Reserve" Chardonnay ($24) Riper fruit and toastier oak in the bouquet. Ditto for the flavor. Richer and fuller with flavor mostly of ripe apple. Smoky, toasty, lightly charcoal after-flavors. Rating: 90/84

Benziger 1996 "California" Pinot Noir ($16) A blend of fruit from Bien Nacido (Santa Barbara), Carneros and Russian River, all top growing regions for this variety. Very attractive, classic, Pinot aroma of light plum, blueberry and crushed rose. And it may get better with a few years in the bottle. Rating: 92/90

Benziger 1997 "Sonoma" Merlot ($14) Leaner and a little tighter than most Merlots, but still with classic cherry flavors. Pleasantly tart; food friendly. Rating: 86/84

Benziger 1996 "Sonoma Valley Reserve" Merlot ($30) Big, deep, intense black cherry aromas and flavors. This is serious red wine! A Merlot with some backbone. Earthy, smoky complexity. Worthy of cellaring 5-10 years. Rating: 90/84

Benziger 1996 "Central Coast" Syrah ($16) A blend of Paso Robles and Bien Nacido fruit. Ripe, almost jammy plum flavors and a bit of chocolate richness. Rating: 94/90

Benziger 1996 "Sonoma Mountain Reserve" Cabernet Sauvignon ($32) This is the wine that used to be labeled "Tribute Meritage." Wonderfully rich and supple with black fruit flavors predominating, but with some berry and cherry undertones as well. There's also the taste of new barrels, with lots of toasty, smoky oak. Long finish. Rating: 94/84

BEST BUY
WINE OF THE WEEK

Benziger 1997 "Sonoma" Cabernet Sauvignon ($15) Blended to small percentages of each of the four Bordeaux blending grapes provides ripe berry and cassis flavors. Amazingly together for such a young wine. Firm, but predominately Alexander Valley fruit yields soft, inoffensive tannins. Rating: 88/90

CHAMPAGNE BOOK

Just in time for your holiday shopping is Tom Stevenson's "Millennium Champagne & Sparkling Wine Guide" ($14.95) which should be available in bookstores everywhere. If you need a mail order source call Wine Trader Book Services at (800) 845-9463.

Stevenson is the Brit who is considered "the" world authority on wines containing bubbles, his "Christie's World Encyclopedia of Champagne & Sparkling Wine" ($50) sets the standard to which all other Champagne tomes aspire.

The smaller version is an annual work which contains reviews and 100 point ratings of 800 bubblies from all over the world that he tasted in the previous year. There is background information on major producers and perhaps most valuable is a list of retailers throughout the U.S. which specialize in stocking sparkling wines.

You won't find every wine you ever heard of (one man can only taste so much in a year), but there's an excellent cross-section from value brands to the greatest and most expensive in the world.

It's a deluxe softbound (one of those pliable covers and bindings) that will just fit in a purse or jacket pocket. And you should probably buy two...one for yourself and one for a stocking stuffer for a friend.

CHAMPAGNE NOTES

It was just about a year ago that I first warned you to stock up on champagne for the upcoming millennium celebration. I warned you that prices on the top of the line bubblies would be going up, or at least not be discounted, due to shortages real or manufactured. And it has happened. Every day longer you wait, it's likely you'll pay even more.

There will be no shortages of popularly priced brands like Korbel, Domaine Ste. Michelle, Frexienet or Andre, but if you're looking for Dom Perignon or Roederer Cristal, bring money and stand in line.

I hesitate to mention it, because it is so limited in availability and so very expensive, but I recently had one of my greatest Champagne experiences of the past 35 years.

Bollinger R.D. 1981 ($190) The R.D. translates to English as "recently disgorged," which means this wine has been resting in some musty cave in northeastern France for nearly 20 years and only had the dead yeast cells removed and the final wired cork affixed in the past six months to a year. Champagne ages very slowly until it's disgorged, so the 20 year old beauty is still amazingly fresh. It's made from a blend of 65 percent Pinot Noir and 35 percent Chardonnay, and is one of the few remaining Champagnes to see wood aging of the base wine before undergoing the secondary fermentation that creates the bubbles. It is an absolutely spectacular taste experience, beyond my ability to adequately describe. Extremely rich and toasty from yeast autolysis and with layer upon layer of complex flavors that start with the entry and linger long after you've swallowed. If not the best Champagne I ever had, certainly within the top three. It is truly worth the money. Rating: 100/84.

Subscription Information

Wines are scored using a unique 100 point system. First number rates quality; second number rates value.