A few snapshots from three wine competitions, all drawing entries solely from vineyards and wineries of the Sierra Foothills American Viticultural Area, a long and thin belt of wildly varied topography, climate and soil stretching from California’s Yuba County in the north to Mariposa County in the south.
The three competitions were the Foothill Wine Fest Competition in Folsom, the Amador County Fair commercial wine competition in Plymouth, and the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee commercial wine competition in Angels Camp.
Insights gleaned from the three:
While the foothills have struggled to settle on a white wine with as much appeal and durability as its red wines, that is changing. Early on, farmers and winemakers saw Sauvignon Blanc as the variety with the most potential to provide wine enthusiasts with a white alternative to the region’s flagship red wine, Zinfandel. And occasionally a Sauvignon Blanc will emerge as the most favored white wine among foothill competition judges.
Not this year. Rather, Albarino, Viognier and Vermentino emerged as the top white wines, with no Sauvignon Blanc seriously challenging their standing. At the Foothill Wine Fest Competition, the exceptionally rich, juicy and peachy Bella Grace Vineyards 2021 Amador County Vermentino ($28) was chosen best white wine. At the Amador County Fair, the rich Ursa Vineyards 2019 Sierra Foothills Hidden Mesa Vineyard Viognier ($24) won the honor. And at the Calaveras County Fair, two entries tied for best white wine, including another Viognier, the Sobon Estate 2021 Amador County Viognier ($18), and the Lewis Grace Winery 2021 Lodi Alta Mesa Albarino ($24).
Incidentally, both the Foothill and the Amador wine competitions stipulate that all entries are to be made with grapes grown within the Sierra Foothills AVA. At Calaveras, however, entries are to be from wineries within the Sierra Foothills AVA, but grapes can be drawn from anywhere, thus the Lewis Grace Albarino, made with fruit from Lodi.
At future competitions, look for other varieties of green grape to yield varietal white wines that well may rise to best-of-show. Already, varietal white wines such as Greco di Tufo, Grenache Blanc, Picpoul Blanc, Semillon, Verdejo and Arinto are generating buzz in the foothills for the vivaciousness and value they deliver.
As elsewhere in California, red wines from black grapes traditionally grown in Italy have produced mixed results along the foothills, with a few notable exceptions, the foremost being the Sangioveses of the winery Vino Noceto in Amador County’s Shenandoah Valley. At the Foothill Wine Fest Competition, Vino Noceto won two of the five gold medals awarded Sangioveses, one for its youthful and lean 2018 Shenandoah Valley Sangiovese ($28), the other for its bigger but nonetheless elegant 2018 Shenandoah Valley Riserva Sangiovese ($39). Of the surprisingly large field of 15 entries, however, best-of-class honors went to a wine from a Vino Noceto neighbor, the hefty and complex Cooper Vineyards 2018 Shenandoah Valley SangioBello ($46), made with the Brunello clone of Sangiovese.
Further evidence that black Italian grape varieties yet may establish a proud presence along the foothills could be found in gold medals awarded this spring to the hefty Nello Olivo 2018 El Dorado Sagrantino ($100), the inky, firm and smoky Starfield 2019 El Dorado Starfield Estate Aglianico ($45) and the Amador Cellars 2019 Amador County Teroldego.
One of the more gratifying offshoots of this year’sround of foothill wine competitions was the recognition given the quality of wines produced by one of the region’s early adapters, Steve Millier. After a stint with David Bruce in the Santa Cruz Mountains, he moved to Calaveras County in 1982 and for the past 40 years has played a pivotal role in raising the county’s profile as fine-wine territory. He started with Stevenot Winery, then went to Ironstone Winery, where he still is winemaker. In the meantime, he and his wife Liz created their own brands, Milliaire and Black Sheep.
They didn’t enter the Foothill Wine Fest Competition, but at Plymouth and Angels Camp they cleaned up. At the Amador County Fair judging, the bright and peppery Milliaire 2019 Amador County Clockspring Vineyard Zinfandel, the sleek, forward and polished Milliaire 2019 Calaveras County Old Vine Zinfandel, and the Milliaire 2019 Calaveras County Malbec all won double-gold medals, which are awarded only when all judges of a panel concur that a wine warrants gold. What’s more, Black Sheep wines won five gold medals at Plymouth.
In the Calaveras County Fair wine competition, Black Sheep won six gold or double-gold medals while Milliaire won three. In addition, Black Sheep entries won two of the competition’s three best-of-show awards: The concentrated and solidly structured Black Sheep 2019 Calaveras County Touriga ($24) was voted best-of-show red wine, while the plush, sweet and spicy Black Sheep 2016 Calaveras County Fortissimo ($28) was elected best-of-show dessert wine.
Aside from a few standouts, the foothill competition season was not especially auspicious for proponents of grape varieties and wine styles drawing inspiration from France’s Bordeaux, Burgundy and Rhone Valley, none of which won a high honor. The climate and lay of the land along the Sierra foothills long have been seen as too inhospitable for the likes of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Rhone Valley varieties look to be a better fit, yet Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache and their siblings have yet to establish consistent traction in the region.
At the Amador County Fair, the panel on which I sat was assigned Cabernet Sauvignon. Of the 19 we evaluated, five won gold medals, none earned double-gold, an indication that not a single one of the entries elicited excitement and unanimity. Those that we gave gold were pleasant red wines, all right, but they lacked clear-cut varietal definition. At the Foothill Wine Fest Competition, nine of the 24 competing Cabernet Sauvignons were awarded gold or double-gold medals, a more impressive showing, while at the Calaveras County Fair just one Cabernet Sauvignon of 14 in the field was awarded gold, and the medal was a double-gold.
That said, some growers, vintners and sites produce head-turning takes on styles of wine closely identified with Bordeaux and Rhone Valley. For example, one of the more captivating wines I found at competitions this spring was the mouth-filling and persistent Brice Station Vineyards Calaveras County Estate 2019 Cabernet Franc ($29), a wine packed with so much cherry fruit and chocolate it took me back to the movie-theater concession stand of my youth, where I would fork over two bits or so for an intense mashup of cherry cream, chocolate and nuts. Brice Station is at an unusually high and cool elevation for a winery in the Sierra foothills – 3,300 feet – and that could explain why its Cabernet Franc is so fresh and dynamic.
And as to Rhone Valley varieties that may excel in the region, keep an eye on Cinsault, especially when it is made by the aforementioned Steve Millier. Under his family’s Black Sheep brand, he had two “Dusty Lane” Cinsaults in the Calaveras County Fair competition. Both won double-gold medals as our panel was as blown away by their charm and dash as we were by the plums, cherries and menthol of the Brice Station Cabernet Franc. Cinsault may be lightly colored, but when it is made as well as the Black Sheep entries – one from the 2018 vintage, the other from 2019 – it is all sunny red fruit and black-pepper spice.
Next year? Who knows? If one thing distinguishes the wine trade in the Sierra foothills even after some 50 years into its modern revival, it is that it continues to evolve in surprising and delightful ways.