Vintages: Review and preview

We have started to see some of the wines from the troubled 2010 vintage here in our market so it seems a good time to update you the consumers on what we think of the wines so far. Last year was one of the worst recent vintages for all of the western appellations with California experiencing the coldest summer in 50 years, followed by an intense four-day fall heat wave, and the Northwest experiencing an early cool down in the fall. This for both areas led to long hang time, but slow or no ripening followed by early rains that caused many of the varietal crops in California to rot on the vine ultimately being dropped and never harvested.

For California the ever popular Chardonnay took the biggest hit of white varietals, so we have yet to try any Chards from California. Oregon, Washington and Idaho too have not released any 2010 Chardonnay that we have seen.

The remainder of the whites we have tried including Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and others though have been quite good with great varietal character and clarity. With an austere vintage like 2010 this is to be expected as the non-Chardonnay white varietals were harvested with higher acid, and lower sugars keeping them lean and crisp.

Roses too from 2010 are showing very well. We now have the 2010 Pink Belly from Skylark in the shop and it is nothing short of spectacular again this year. The first year the wine is 100 percent saignee of Grenache, the wine is crisp and bone dry but lush with strawberry flavors reminiscent of the best wines from the Tavel region of France. With the wine being all Grenache this may explain why it is in such good shape as this is typically one of the first reds harvested.

The wine also does starkly illuminate one of the other issues from the cold summer and fall of 2010; little was produced. Only 140 or so cases of this gem were made so it will sell out quickly, like so many of our other annual favorites like the Rochioli Sauvignon Blanc. For years the SB from this great Russian River Valley producer has been one of our favorites. Normally the winery produces between 2,200 and 2,500 cases; in 2010 they were only able to make 1,200 cases leaving us with an allocation of just four bottles! So while the whites we have tried are good, in the B to B+ grade level they are showing firm pricing and short supply.

For reds none have been released and we have heard little from winemakers on what we might expect based on their "barrel trials." We know that Syrah and Zinfandel in California fared especially poorly based on last year's harvest feedback, while in Washington and Idaho the reds did gain some benefit over California from the more mild consistent weather in the fall, assuming they were harvested before the cold snaps of late October and early November.

It is many times difficult to get a read this early on the coming vintage of 2011, however there are some early and troubling signs. The aforementioned cold snap of last fall in Washington and Idaho occurred before many vines were able to "harden off" their buds for this year so it is likely to be a drastically smaller harvest coming up - some project as low as 50 percent.

In California the spring of this year has been cold and wet driven by the same La Nina weather pattern that has affected us here in North Idaho, leading one California Winemaker to lament "Could it really be as bad two years in a row?" In fact it could, however it is still early so hopefully the weather warms enough for the vines to regain the loss of the warm spring, assuming the "shatter" or the breaking of buds and flowers from the rain did not destroy too many potential bundles.

So here is what to do as a consumer: 2007 and 2008 are being celebrated in the wine press as perhaps the best back to back vintages ever, and based on the 2008s we have tried we would mostly agree. While the Washington 2008s are very good, in the A grade range, they do not quite reach the quality of the A+ vintage of 2007. For California the vintages are nearly equivalent in their stunning quality. For Oregon 2007 was an off vintage but 2008 and 2009 were spectacular.

Many of these wines are still in the market or just being released, and are being coupled with a general over supply and weak demand in the wine markets creating a perfect storm for consumers offering great wine at compelling prices. So buy them up now when you find wines you like, these great back to back vintages will age well and take you through the lean years that are likely to come as the short and not so good vintages of 2010 and potentially 2011 start to hit the market.

If there is a topic you would like to read about or questions on wine you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.

George Balling is co-owner with his wife Mary Lancaster of the dinner party - a wine and table top decor shop in Coeur d'Alene by Costco. George is also the managing judge of The North Idaho Wine Rodeo, and writes frequently for the online version of Coeur d'Alene Magazine at www.cdamagazine.com. His articles can also be found on the blog at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com.