September 2018

WINE WATCH
Less is more at Dry
Creek Vineyards
by Bennet Bodenstein
Dry Creek Vineyards is one of the stalwarts of the California
wine industry. The winemakers at Dry Creek have always
been able to coax the very best in flavor, aroma, and quality
out of the grapes that they carefully select for their wines.
While they also make the classic varieties and have established
a reputation as a producer of better wines, they have also
gained a reputation for what their winemakers can do with
other lesser known grape varieties and styles.
Unfortunately, some wineries buy finished wines of lesserknown
varieties from a central source and then bottle them
under their own label. Not very nice, but a common practice
often used to broaden a wineries portfolio. At Dry Creek
Vineyards, the grapes they use are monitored throughout
the entire growing period by the winemakers. They are then
selectively picked during harvest to get the best possible
quality out of each grape. This is tedious work but one taste of
a Dry Creek wine will convince you that it was all worth it.
Dry Creek Vineyard 2015 Old Vines Zinfandel ($35).
So what is all of the bru-ha-ha over old vines? Do geriatric
vines make better wine, or at least different wines, than their
juvenile compatriots? In the case of the Zinfandel, they sure
do. It seems that the grapes from these older vines produce
wines that are more intense in flavor and aroma, with a longer,
smoother, aftertaste than their younger brethren. But as with
anything good, there is a down side. These older vines do not
produce many grapes, so the supply of their wines is always
limited. This is a wine that exalts the fruit flavors and aromas of
blueberries and cherries along with a deep earthy flavor and a
background of oak and a suggestion of allspice. The aftertaste
is just as impressive, full of flavor and very exciting. If you have
never tried a Zinfandel with barbecue meats of any type, you
are in for a memorable surprise.
Dry Creek Vineyard 2017 Clarksburg Chenin Blanc
($15). Chenin Blanc is another one of those varieties that
has had a miserable past in California. It is famous for the
wines made in the Loire Valley of France that are, for the
most part, sweet. Chenin Blanc was previously used mainly
as filler in cheap white wines and jug wines and was looked
upon as a grape variety without much of a future in the fine
wine community. The winemakers at Dry Creek Vineyards
saw a better future for the Chenin Blanc if it was treated as
a fine wine grape and not as a minor player. What resulted
is an elegant dry wine offering the aromas of melon, peach,
and lemon peel. On the palate the wine displays the flavors of
tropical fruits, honeysuckle, and rose petal. The finish is fruity
and very complex. This wine lifts the commonplace Chenin
Blanc to new heights of excellence and quality, while offering a
fine and flavorful reprieve from the ordinary.
Dry Creek Vineyard 2017 Fume Blanc ($15). A great
deal of talent went into the making of this wine and then to
name an American wine Fume Blanc is placing that wine in
better company and it will surely be judged so. Fortunately, the
wine lives up to its name. The aroma has a green apple and
fresh cut grass aroma with lemon, white pepper, and black
olives in the background. The flavor does have that signature
smoky element as well as pineapple and lemon with a hint of
oak and spices. While most Fume Blanc wines are relegated to
the accompaniment of shellfish or seafood, this wine will fit well
with vegetable dishes and poultry. It is a very fine wine, which
is typical of all of the wines from Dry Creek. P
72
SEPTEMBER 2018