The history of Constant Diamond Mountain Vineyard, the highest in the DMD appellation at 2,200 feet, dates to 1890.
Mining Jewels on Diamond MountainBy Steve PitcherJust as the Napa Valley floor has been carved into numerous sub-AVAs over the last few decades, beginning with the Stags Leap District in 1989, so too have Napa's mountain winegrowing pockets been officially recognized as distinct appellations. The eastern Vaca Range, which towers above the Silverado Trail, is home to Atlas Peak and Howell Mountain; the more-famous Mayacamas Mountains that straddle the western border between Napa and Sonoma counties host Mt. Veeder, Spring Mountain District and Diamond Mountain District. Each offers distinctive wines and tells a compelling story.
Yet this is a tale of Diamond Mountain, the newest of the five, which despite being the youngest of Napa's mountain appellations, is also the most historic in terms of winegrowing. It arguably produces wines - notably Cabernet Sauvignon - that are bold yet elegant with charming blueberry nuances and tannins that are unique for a mountain appellation, resembling the "iron fist in a velvet glove" tannins of the Stags Leap District.
The Diamond Mountain District rises above the valley west of Highway 29 (aka St. Helena Highway) between Calistoga and the northern limits of St. Helena beginning at the 400-foot elevation mark. Spring Mountain District fringes its southern border and Petrified Forest Road, which meets the highway just north of Calistoga, serves as its northern border. The Napa-Sonoma county line, at an elevation of 2,200 feet above sea level, is its western boundary. It encompasses some 5,000 acres, of which less than 500 are planted to vines, making its acreage under vine the smallest of any Napa Valley sub-AVA.
Most of Diamond Mountain and its peak are actually in Sonoma County, but the winegrowing reputation of the mountain has always been associated with the Napa side. This distinction was the basis for the only significant rough patch the petitioners encountered in their 2001 quest for AVA status. The dispute was also the reason that the AVA is called Diamond Mountain District (DMD), instead of just Diamond Mountain. >
There are currently at least 13 independent growers and seven wineries with estate vineyards in the DMD. For one of them in particular, the rich and storied history of the mountain has finally come full circle with the recent release of a much-anticipated, modern-day Diamond Mountain red.
Jacob Schram, a German immigrant and a barber by profession, set the story of Diamond Mountain into motion. He arrived in San Francisco in 1854, eventually moving to the Napa Valley in 1857, where he cut hair at the White Sulphur Springs resort in St. Helena (the quaint spa remains a popular destination today). In 1862, encouraged by the success of German-born entrepreneurs in the valley, such as vintner Charles Krug and wine merchant Gottlieb Groezinger among others, Schram purchased a virgin tract of land between 450 and 950 feet in elevation on the slopes of Diamond Mountain, so called for the volcanic glass crystals in the soil.
The eruption of Mt. Konocti on the south shore of Clear Lake eight million years ago is credited with contributing those crystals along with great quantities of volcanic ash to the mountain's soil composition. Mt. Veeder, another volcano to the south of Diamond Mountain, almost certainly contributed to the pyroclastic debris also found in this part of the Mayacamas Mountains. The AVA gains additional luster from deposits of quick-draining Quartz Hill series soil, which is relatively unusual for the Mayacamas Range.
Schram knew little about soil at the time, but he would frequently boast that he bought the parcel, located just south of the town of Calistoga, "for a trifle" (no one knows how much exactly). Because it was covered in timber and underbrush, it was not then highly valued. He cleared a few acres of the relatively flat, red-soiled, volcanic benches of native chaparral and scrub oak, and planted grapevines. He would later hire Chinese labor to tunnel into the soft, volcanic rock of the hillside to create a network of cool, underground cellars. Thus was born Schramsberg, or "Schram's Mountain," the first hillside winery in the Napa Valley and so proclaimed today by an official state historical landmark plaque.
Schram planted his vineyard to grape varieties suited for table wine, initially mission grapes and later, as the vineyard was expanded, palomino, zinfandel, riesling and other "foreign varieties." Sparkling wine was not in his plans. In fact, Schramsberg would not acquire its reputation for superb bubbly for another hundred years and several changes in ownership. In 1965, the property was purchased by the Davies family. "When we resurrected Schramsberg, our goal was to produce truly world-class méthode champenoise sparkling wines," notes proprietor Jamie Davies. To that end, "We replanted the historic vineyards to chardonnay and pinot noir," she recalls, describing the efforts of herself and her late husband, Jack. "Over the course of the next 30 years, it became apparent [however] that the Schram land was better suited to the cultivation of red Bordeaux varieties."
In 1994, the Davies family implemented the second replanting of its Diamond Mountain vineyards, this time with an emphasis on cabernet sauvignon. Ten years later, the premier release of the 2001 J. Davies Cabernet Sauvignon, named to honor the late family patriarch Jack Davies, brought the property back to its roots as a producer of hillside-grown red wine.
Ironically, it was the continued success of Schramsberg as a distinguished sparkling wine house that afforded the J. Davies winemaking team the luxury of ten years time to perfect its sole Cabernet Sauvignon from estate vineyards (of the 42 acres under vine at this 217-acre estate, 36 are planted to the variety). The J. Davies Schram Vineyard contributed 75 percent of the fruit for the wine, and the nearby J. Davies McEachran Vineyard (originally planted by Colin McEachran in 1878) the remaining 25 percent. The two plots, flanked by two cool creek canyons - Nash Creek to the north and Ritchie Creek to the south - and surrounded by dense coniferous and deciduous forests, are the DMD's southernmost vineyards.
The narrow, barely two-lane Diamond Mountain Road is the AVA's principal access route; it runs up the slope from Highway 29 in a northwest direction through dense forests of redwood, fir and madrone nearly all the way up to the summit. All DMD wineries - except J. Davies (located at Schramsberg), Teachworth and Graeser - are located along this winding road.
At road's end, one reaches Fred and Mary Constant's Diamond Mountain Vineyard. Laid out near the mountaintop at 2,200 feet above sea level, it is one of the oldest and highest in Napa, dating back to the late 1890s when Danish-born Andrew Rasmussen, the superintendent of Greystone Winery in St. Helena (now the Culinary Institute of America) planted 40 acres of vines at the crest of the mountain. By the time AVA status was being sought, the Constant vineyard had expanded to 70 acres, 15 of which lie on the Sonoma side of the county line. As alluded to earlier, the Constants argued in comments submitted to ATF that because the proposed AVA did not physically encompass all of Diamond Mountain, the name "Diamond Mountain" could be confusing, especially because they owned the "Diamond Mountain Vineyard" trademark. They believed the term "Diamond Mountain District" would be more appropriate and would reduce confusion. Their argument carried the day.
The Constants also proposed amending the southwestern boundary of the viticultural area to include their Sonoma County acreage, asserting that the climate and soil of their Sonoma property are indistinguishable from that of their Napa property. The petitioners, 15 vintners and growers on the mountain led by Rudy von Strasser, winemaker and proprietor of the winery that bears his name, countered with incontrovertible evidence that Diamond Mountain has always been associated viticulturally with the Napa side of the Mayacamas. The ATF concurred, and approved an all-Napa AVA on June 1, 2001.
Cabernet Sauvignon is the engine that drives the DMD, with the vast majority of the mountain's approximately 500 acres of vineyard planted to several clones of that variety, along with the other Bordeaux varieties - merlot, malbec, petit verdot and cabernet franc. But a smattering of other varieties are found here as well. Ever resourceful, Fred Constant earlier this year released the premier bottling of the 2002 Constant Diamond Mountain Vineyard Constancii (constan-SEE-eye) Syrah (reviewed on page 76), Sonoma County, made at the small, 1,000-case on-site winery - presumably the only winery that sports a bocce ball court on its roof - from the Constant's "exiled" 15 acres. Those inclined to read back labels are rewarded with this nugget: "Constancii is a special place. It is the only Sonoma County vineyard and the only Rhône varietal vineyard on Diamond Mountain. When we developed the ranch in 1998, U.S. Fish and Wildlife found an endangered and protected thistle (periwinkle in color) on our nearby vernal pool. The thistle was called, serendipitously, Constancii." Constant, Constancii - serendipitous, indeed.
When reminded that Reverie grows a little roussanne in its Diamond Mountain estate vineyard, Constant indicated that the back label for succeeding vintages of Constancii will be amended to read "the only syrah vineyard on Diamond Mountain." That distinction nicely counterbalances his defeat on the boundary issue, although he might also have to word it "the highest syrah vineyard," because there are five acres of syrah in Sterling's Diamond Mountain Ranch, which ranges to 1,700 feet in elevation, and a few acres of the variety in one of Rudy von Strasser's vineyards. >
Syrah and a few other Rhône varieties have a toehold in the AVA, but because growers and vintners can earn more from cabernet than chardonnay, the world's leading white variety plays only a minor role on the mountain - and one that's getting even smaller at that. The 43 acres of chardonnay originally planted at Sterling's 300-acre Diamond Mountain Ranch in the late 1970s were replanted mostly to merlot in 1997, resulting in the loss of a truly distinctive mountain-grown Chardonnay with all the transparent minerality and ageability of a Grand Cru Chablis.
Von Strasser has made two vineyard-designated Chardonnays (one of which is reviewed on page 76) in a more "buxom" style than Sterling's Diamond Mountain Ranch, but his program is also fading away. And that's it for Chardonnay on Diamond Mountain. But there is a glimmer of hope, albeit a slight one, for whites: Feeling the tug of his Austrian heritage, von Strasser is nurturing a half-acre of grüner veltliner he put in a couple of years ago, the first ever planting in California of this rare white variety that is found almost exclusively in Austria. "The first commercial crop will come in next year," von Strasser says. "It's a true experiment. I have no idea what it will produce," he admits, although he added another half-acre last year.
Also unusual is that within the DMD, virtually every vineyard contains some petit verdot. In fact, the mountain is home to probably the greatest concentration of this scarce variety in any of Napa Valley's sub-AVAs. One of the classic black Bordeaux varieties, petit verdot on its own yields deeply colored, concentrated, tannic wine; the grape brings these attributes to the blending table as well.
As of late, it's also a very profitable variety. Each year, the Napa Valley Grapegrowers organization recommends prices to guide growers in contracting for their premium wine grapes. This year, it recommended a price range of $4,300 to $6,000 per ton for petit verdot, higher than any other variety, including cabernet sauvignon, which came in second with a range of $3,900 to $4,800. In 2004, the actual average price for Napa Valley petit verdot was $5,452 per ton, with 893 tons crushed, according to the California Agricultural Statistics Service. That makes it the eleventh-most crushed grape in Napa Valley, far behind cabernet sauvignon with 42,385 tons.
Most vintners use petit verdot sparingly because of its power, but von Strasser loves what it does for varietal Cabernet Sauvignon bottlings and blends, and tends to up the percentages more so than any other vintner in Napa (or anywhere else in the world, for that matter). His 2001 Estate Cabernet, for example, is 85 percent cabernet and 15 percent petit verdot, and the 2001 Von Strasser Diamond Mountain District Reserve contains a whopping 44 percent petit verdot, along with 45 percent cabernet and 11 percent merlot. In some years, petit verdot has led the Reserve blend, such as in the 1997 version, which contained 40 percent petit verdot, 37 percent cabernet and 23 percent merlot. Never ponderous or painfully tannic, the Reserve always impresses with its depth of flavor, blueberry-tinged aromatics, lush palate-feel and superb balance. I've used the metaphor in the past when describing the Von Strasser Reserve, but it bears repeating: The wine is evocative of the hippo in Fantasia wearing a tutu and carrying a parasol while performing gracefully on a high wire.
"Since starting as a winemaker on Diamond Mountain [in 1990], each year I've challenged myself to make an ultrawine, a single barrel of the most intense Bordeaux blend possible," von Strasser explains. "Without fail, each ultrawine I've made has relied heavily on petit verdot. Of all the Bordeaux grapes, petit verdot has the darkest color, most intense blueberry-like aroma and the most viscous mouth-feel. The goal of the Reserve is to make a Diamond Mountain ultrawine - to capture the intensity of the petit verdot and complement it with our finest cabernet and merlot blocks to produce a truly unique wine."
The 15-plus acres ("with mountain vineyards you can never be 100-percent certain," von Strasser observes) of von Strasser estate vineyards, planted between 600 and 700 feet beginning in 1970, contain the second-largest planting of petit verdot in the DMD - about two acres - along with twelve acres of cabernet sauvignon and one of merlot. Sterling owns four acres, the district's largest block.
Petit verdot even insinuated itself into the scheme of things at Diamond Creek. Its legendary 87-year-old proprietor Al Brounstein, whose business card emphatically states "Cabernet Sauvignon: Exclusively," confides that he was persuaded to add an acre of it in 1996 by his great friend May-Elaine de Lencquesaing, proprietor of Château Pichon-Longueville-Comtesse de Lalande, whose grand vin usually contains about eight percent of the variety in its blend. The importance of the cabernet planted here cannot be understated, yet even in Diamond Creek's formative years, malbec, merlot and cabernet franc were integral components in the house specialty: four separate bottlings of Cabernet Sauvignon from a quartet of topographically distinct estate vineyards. It was, indeed, Brounstein's efforts that brought recognition to Diamond Mountain Cabernet in the first place.
Two years after the Davies began to breathe new life into Schramsberg in 1965, Brounstein, a former wholesale pharmaceuticals salesman, bought 79 acres of virgin land at 1500 Diamond Mountain Road from Bill Bounsall and set about clearing his property of scrub oak and underbrush to plant vineyards. By 1968, he had identified three separate vineyard locations based on soil distinctions and planted them with vine cuttings he smuggled in from two First Growth châteaux in Bordeaux.
To this day, Brounstein steadfastly declines to identify the sources of the plant material - "I promised them I'd never disclose the names; it was part of the arrangement," he insists - so the curious can only speculate. Mouton Rothschild can probably be eliminated because it wasn't a First Growth in the 1960s. So that leaves four - Lafite, Latour, Margaux and Haut-Brion - as possible candidates. Brounstein first shipped the cuttings to Mexico City, then forwarded them on to Tijuana. From a private airport nearby, he then piloted a small plane and flew across the border with a few bundles stashed out of sight. He managed to clear customs in San Diego each time he made the flight, but it took several trips to smuggle all the cuttings up to Diamond Mountain where
he established the first commercial cabernet sauvignon estate vineyard in California. "Some wineries were making Cabernet before then," Brounstein explains, referring to Beaulieu Vineyard's Private Reserve, among others, "but they made other wines as well. My estate produced varietal Cabernet Sauvignon to the exclusion of all other wines."
The premier Diamond Creek Cabernet, vintage 1972, was released in 1974 at $7.50 per bottle, a princely sum in those days. The winery celebrated its 30th anniversary this year with three specially labeled, vineyard-designated Cabernets from vintage 2002 featuring Brounstein's own paintings (he studied art at the Sorbonne in Paris) in colors representing the soils of the various vineyards. Today Brounstein's 2,000 cases of vineyard-designated Diamond Mountain District Cabernets are among California's most sought after - and expensive - wines: Red Rock Terrace, Volcanic Hill and Gravelly Meadow vineyard designates each carry a $175 price tag; the more rare Lake Vineyard bottling, which because of the difficulty in obtaining fruit ripeness has been produced only eight times, commands $350.
Ranging from 600 to 900 feet in elevation, the vineyards illustrate the topographical variety within the AVA. The first to be planted was Volcanic Hill comprising eight hillside, south-facing acres of fine soil rich in white, weathered tuff (compressed volcanic ash deposited millions of years ago from the eruption of a volcano to the north now known as Mt. Konocti in what was to become Lake County). Volcanic Hill arguably produces the estate's most muscular Cabernet with ripe, supple tannins and deeply concentrated black fruit - somewhat reminiscent of Château Latour. Next to be developed was the seven-acre Red Rock Terrace Vineyard on red, iron-rich soil with a north-northwest exposure, which yields Diamond Creek's most accessible wine. The cooler Gravelly Meadow site is made up of five acres of mostly well-drained sand and gravel from a prehistoric riverbed; it produces a Cabernet comparatively tighter than Red Rock Terrace, but softer than Volcanic Hill, with a noticeable minerality - somewhat reminiscent of Château Haut-Brion.
The fourth named site to be developed was Lake Vineyard in 1972. Bordering a small lake, the three-quarter-acre parcel of gravel and sand has the chilliest microclimate on the estate because of the cool Pacific breezes that travel down the Russian River corridor each afternoon and reach into this part of the property.
Last to be planted was the unnamed one-acre petit verdot vineyard, in soil similar to that of Volcanic Hill. It is a south-facing, natural heat trap that ripens approximately 15 days earlier than does neighboring Lake Vineyard (the winery's namesake, Diamond Creek, flows between the two parcels). Its 15-degree slope contributes to a terroir uniquely suited to this extraordinarily demanding variety. Its fruit is divided as veteran winemaker Phil Steinscheiber deems appropriate between the vineyard-designated Cabs, which are enhanced with varying percentages of merlot, cabernet franc, malbec and petit verdot. Steinschreiber observes that, "Petit verdot is planted in very small percentages because it ripens late and in most vineyards it rarely achieves full maturity. Few wine drinkers realize that late spring frost and varying weather patterns during the growing season can seriously affect this variety while sparing others."
Diamond Creek may focus exclusively on Cabernet Sauvignon (enhanced with small percentages of other Bordeaux varieties), but tiny Diamond Terrace Vineyards takes a purist's approach, producing limited quantities of 100-percent Cabernet Sauvignon. Its steeply terraced, five-acre vineyard was planted in 1984 to cabernet sauvignon, with more cab vines added in 1992. Maureen Taylor, who now owns the property with her husband, Hal, recalls that, "We knew right off the bat when we purchased the property in 1998 that this vineyard could produce a big, elegant and age-worthy mountain Cabernet - our favorite kind of wine!"
Diamond Terrace is one of three DMD properties - including Dyer Vineyard and Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards - that vinifies its wine elsewhere. Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards at 1769 Diamond Mountain Road makes a limited-production Cabernet from its estate fruit at a custom crush facility in Napa. Owner-grower Peter Thompson explains, "The vineyard is almost at the top of Diamond Mountain, and it's far too remote for a winery."At 1,875 feet in elevation, it was almost too remote for a vineyard, but the undeveloped site proved to be just what Thompson, a former lawyer, had in mind when he commenced his two-and-a-half-year search for the ultimate vineyard site. His quest culminated on Diamond Mountain in 1995. He relates that, "After a year of planning, permitting and drafting the most extensive erosion control plan ever devised in the Napa Valley, we cleared 13 acres of scrub and brush and prepared the land for planting."
His next search was for a consistent, non-seasonal source of water for irrigation - required because the prevalent volcanic ash in the soil won't hold water. "We had to drill deep," Thompson relates, "but the payoff was abundant ice-cold, clear water free of minerals and chemicals that needs no treatment before it's used," Thompson says. The resulting well is one of the deepest in Napa Valley at 850 feet.
The combination of soils, mostly volcanic ash and some loam, and varying northern exposures - northeast, north and northwest - required just the right rootstock and red grape clones. For this task, Thompson turned to well-known Napa Valley viticulturist Rex Geitner. "Rex's selection process was exacting, but required to optimize use of the land and micro-climates within the vineyard," Thompson stresses. Sectional planting was completed in July 1997. Thompson named the vineyard after his two young sons, Andrew and Geoffrey.
The Andrew Geoffrey Vineyard is planted to two clones of cabernet sauvignon (78 percent), cabernet franc (18 percent) and petit verdot (four percent). The first wine - one barrel of experimental Cabernet - came off the vineyard in 1999. The current release is the 2002 Andrew Geoffrey Cabernet Sauvignon. Just down the mountain, Thompson's neighbors, baseball Hall-of-Famer Tom Seaver and his wife, Nancy, have planted a new, small vineyard and intend to eventually have the grapes custom crushed for their own label.
Despite the Seavers' celebrity, the winemaking Dyers, Dawnine and Bill, may be the most famous couple on Diamond Mountain. The veteran Napa Valley winemakers purchased twelve acres at 1501 Diamond Mountain Road in 1992, when she was still the winemaker at Domaine Chandon (her tenure there lasted a remarkable 25 years) and he was directing winemaking at Sterling Vineyards. "After living for 18 years in [the town of] Calistoga, we wanted to have a home in the country," Bill explains. "We were shown this undeveloped site almost as an afterthought, and as I was walking the property it occurred to me that we were just across the road from Diamond Creek and Von Strasser, and that maybe this would be good vineyard land of the same caliber as theirs. As it turned out, we planted the vineyard first, and built the house later."
"We feel our immediate neighborhood - the 1500 block of Diamond Mountain Road - is the 'filet' of the area, since we enjoy close proximity to Diamond Creek, Von Strasser and Reverie," Dawnine adds. "These wineries are not only good neighbors, but are also all producers of superb and collectable Cabernet Sauvignon."
A little more than two of the Dyer's hillside acres were planted to cabernet sauvignon, cab franc, merlot, malbec and petit verdot. "The rest of the property we leave to the deer, the coyotes and the bobcats," Dawnine smiles. Over the years, the vineyard mix has been refined. "Those varieties that give the best wines have been favored and the others have been grafted over," explains Bill, who says the current make-up is 78 percent cabernet sauvignon, 17 percent cabernet franc and five percent petit verdot. Malbec never performed well in the Dyer Vineyard and early on was grafted over to cabernet sauvignon.
"At 600 feet elevation, our north-facing vineyard site looks to be an ancient rock slide from the hillside above," Bill notes. "Ripping the soil to remove rocks in preparation for planting proved a Herculean task - the largest rocks were removed and the vines struggle with the remainder. Streaks of gravel, chalky tuff and red soil - all volcanic in origin - surround the rhyolitic stones. Indeed, the soils [of Diamond Mountain] are derived from andesite and rhyolite," he continues, "whose parent material formed in volcanic activity during the Pliocene Era. These 'upland' volcanic soils are quite acidic compared to those on the valley floor, and contain none of the sandstone and shale of sedimentary origin found in the Spring Mountain District AVA immediately to the south of Diamond Mountain. The wines of the DMD typically show an intensity and concentration attributed to these deep, but sparse volcanic soils."
Crop levels are low on the Dyer's difficult site, which has slopes over five degrees. "Yield has never exceeded 2.5 tons per acre," Bill says, noting further that the farming is sustainable and on its way toward organic. "This is our front yard, after all," he explains. "We cleared the land and planted the vineyard, and it's important to us that we be responsible stewards of the property."
"Bill's earlier experience with Diamond Mountain gave him an edge in selecting the varieties and clones to plant in our tiny vineyard," Dawnine says. While at Sterling, he developed its first single vineyard wines, including a Diamond Mountain Ranch Cabernet that garnered a great deal of attention and praise in the early 1980s. "He hand-selected the plant material, focusing on clones and rootstock to best match the site, and continues to oversee all vineyard activities," she adds. Together they make their small-production Dyer Vineyard Estate Cabernet Sauvignon at Rudy von Strasser's neighboring winery; their first vintage was 1996.
Von Strasser and his wife, Rita, established their eponymous winery in 1990, having purchased existing vineyards and a home on 35 acres at 1510 Diamond Mountain Road in that year from the Gilby family of British gin fame, who had used it as a corporate retreat. The vineyards were originally planted by Bill Bounsall in 1970, and prior to the Gilby's tenure, the property was owned by Bill Roddis, whose Roddis Cellars Diamond Mountain Cabernet debuted with the 1978 vintage.
The energetic, 46-year-old von Strasser makes more vineyard-designated wines - five in current release - from Diamond Mountain fruit than any of his peers, with even more bottlings on the way. His Zinfandel, from the 1.5-acre Monhoff Vineyard, is the only Diamond Mountain District Zinfandel. He makes a cabernet-based red blend from the 1,200-foot elevation Sori Bricco Vineyard (formerly known as Persching Vineyard), planted in 1968, a parcel he considers the source of the absolutely finest merlot in Napa Valley (single vineyard/single varietal specialist Nickel & Nickel concurs, and makes an exceptional Merlot from the site).
In 1993, not long after von Strasser arrived, the neighborhood welcomed Norm Kiken (pronounced Kick-en), a former Manhattan insurance executive, to the mountain. He invested $1.4 million in 40 acres at 1520 Diamond Mountain Road, which included 29 acres of vines planted in 1989 and an old redwood barn built in 1885 by pioneer female vineyardist Adele Furniss. Here, Kiken and his wife, Evelyn, built a home and a winery, which they christened Reverie.
The property is located in a unique valley once known as the Bounsall property, which was ultimately divided into Diamond Creek Winery, Von Strasser Winery and Reverie. Kiken's portion is "an incredibly steep, south-facing, 40-acre mountainside property composed of rocky, infertile volcanic soil," Kiken notes. The vineyard contains all five Bordeaux varieties as well as small plantings of barbera, tempranillo and roussanne.
Reverie's wines are crafted by Kiken, with some input from consultant Ted Lemon (proprietor and winemaker at Littorai), in the restored, 120-year-old redwood barn. The two men are keen on Roussanne and although they only make one barrel per year, it has met with critical success. "Lemon feels that Roussanne will be the main white wine in Napa Valley in 30 years," Kiken relates.
Maybe so, but in the meantime, Reverie's focus is on Bordeaux varietals and blends, including the 2002 Special Reserve, a blend of 85 percent cabernet sauvignon, ten percent petit verdot and five percent merlot and 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon. A small quantity of Reverie's cabernet sauvignon grapes are sold to other producers, including Cliff Lede, a super-premium winery in the Stags Leap District that will release its first DMD Cab, from the 2003 vintage, next year.
Michael Updegraff, Cliff Lede's general manager, observes that, "Diamond Mountain is one of the very top places to grow cabernet. The wines have incredible purity and beautiful flavors - outstanding Cabernets. When we got the chance to work with Norm Kiken's incredible vineyard, we simply couldn't pass up the opportunity to head up the mountain."
Cliff Lede was introduced to Reverie's grapes by Marco DiGiulio, who in addition to making wines under his own label, has held the winemaking reins at Pine Ridge and Lokoya, among other wineries. In 2002, he was the director of winemaking at Cliff Lede, and by then knew these grapes extremely well. "Norm Kiken grows cabernet sauvignon for me on Diamond Mountain in his Mark K Vineyard," says DiGiulio. "I began working with his vineyards as the winemaker for Lokoya. He has become justifiably renowned for his Reverie wines and has been gracious enough to let me have a few tons of his cabernet sauvignon. The rows from which I source my grapes run east-west at a little over 1,000 feet above sea level on a steep south-facing slope. The soil consists of a well-drained volcanic loam and the vines are trained on a vertical trellis."
While there are several outside producers that make Diamond Mountain District-labeled wine - including DiGiulio Wines (Cabernet Sauvignon), Laird Family (Cabernet Sauvignon), Lokoya Winery (Cabernet Sauvignon) and Ramey Wine Cellars, whose proprietor David Ramey makes an elegant, yet powerful Bordeaux-style blend he calls simply Diamond Mountain District Red Wine - there are only four that make vineyard-designated DMD wines.
Since the mid-1990s, Martin Ray Winery has produced vineyard-designated Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon from Fred Constant's lofty Diamond Mountain Vineyard. Current proprietor Courtney Benham is a disciple of the legendary Santa Cruz Mountains winemaker, and a big fan of Constant's fruit. He believes, as did Martin Ray, that mountain fruit is inherently superior. "This unique mountain vineyard site provides a variety of volcanic soils, superior sun exposure and nighttime cooling and excellent drainage, resulting in small, intense, full-flavored berries."
Off-site buyer Stonegate Winery, in Napa, makes a vineyard-designated Cabernet from the Spaulding Vineyard (elevation 1,600 feet) under a long-term contract from grower Jim Spaulding (Stonegate's former owner). Then there's the aforementioned Sori Bricco Merlot made down in Oakville by Nickel & Nickel.
But it is Sterling Vineyards, located in Calistoga a little less than a mile outside the DMD, that is most closely associated with DMD without a physical presence there. It is actually the largest landowner on the mountain, farming some 259 acres in two vineyards. The fruit from Sterling's celebrated Diamond Mountain Ranch, sited from 1,500 to 1,700 feet in elevation, goes into a vineyard-designated Cabernet Sauvignon that has been produced since 1982. (Sterling also owns the nearby 60-acre Peterson Ranch off Petrified Forest Road, whose DMD fruit goes into the winery's Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.)
Just a couple of miles north of the foot of Diamond Mountain Road on Highway 29, little-known Kortum Canyon Road (the western extension of Lincoln Street, Calistoga's main drag) offers easy access to incomparable views of the vast sweep of mountainside vineyards that make up Sterling's Diamond Mountain Ranch. After traveling about two miles from 29, the cliff-hugging road curves to bring the vineyard into view, with its steep terraces cut into the ashy, volcanic soil wherever the land will allow. In some areas, the slope is docile and cooperative; in others, it resists by caving in like talcum powder. The vista is breathtaking. When the paved road becomes a dirt road, you've crossed over the county line.
At its highest elevation, the 307-acre Diamond Mountain Ranch stretches to a towering 1,700 feet. Over all of its rocky width, only 199 acres can be devoted to vineyard. Here, above the fog, the sunlight meets with no obstacles and vines bud out earlier than on the valley floor and suffer less mildew and rot. The winter is warmer, the spring cooler and the climate less extreme. A replanting of the vineyard was started in 1997 and completed in 2003. Old vines were not removed, just cut back to the ground so as not to disturb the terraces. New vines were planted just to one side of the older ones. The 18 blocks now contain 60 acres of cabernet sauvignon, 35 acres of merlot, ten of cab franc, five of syrah and four of petit verdot. According to winemaker Mike Westrick, "The 2005 harvest will include fruit from all 18 blocks for the first time since completion of the replant."
In the south portion of the vineyard, closer to Diamond Mountain Road, a short distance beyond the paved portion of Pacheteau Road, but inaccessible by any public way, a behemoth of stone, brick and wood sinks back into the shadow of a few firs, quiet and deserted. This is a place not forgotten, not revered, held together by ancient craftsmanship, never to be remodeled. A roost for owls and bats. It is Sterling's ghost winery.
The stone plaque above the keystone of the entry arch over the heavy wooden doors displays the monogram "RS" and the year "1888." Richard Schmidt was a San Francisco wine broker who moved to St. Helena in 1884. Determined to become a vintner, Schmidt planted some 300 acres of vines on Diamond Mountain and built this pre-electricity, gravity-flow winery in 1888. Prohibition closed the winery down and much of the acreage was replanted to prunes.
For years, the RS Winery went unused until then-owner Gene Hills made it available to Al Brounstein for barrel storage. "We stored the few barrels of our first harvest - 1971 - there," recalls Boots Brounstein, Al's wife of 36 years, "because we had no winery of our own in those days. The 1971 Cab was never released. When the 1972 harvest came in - that was our first release - we stored those barrels there, too, and our cellar master would top off the barrels of the '72 with the '71." In 1977, Sterling Vineyards acquired all of Diamond Mountain Ranch and its ghost winery.
Just north of Calistoga and Sterling, a turn west from Highway 29 onto Petrified Forest Road will take the visitor after about a mile to Graeser Winery, the only winery in the Diamond Mountain District that's officially open to the public without an advance appointment. It's also one of the very few wineries in the appellation with no petit verdot growing in its vineyard. Proprietor-winemaker Richard Graeser established his vineyard and winery in the early 1980s at a ranch he inherited from his parents called La Perlita del Monte.
"I came to the Napa Valley after my father's death, to help my mother prepare this property for sale. Within a month of my arrival, she died - so here I was, wondering what to do," Graeser recalls. "I had inherited half of a very lovely property near Calistoga, and since I didn't have very many prospects for future jobs, I decided, 'What the hell, why not plant a vineyard and start a winery?' After all, everybody else had one." He planted ten acres of vines on the 45-acre estate, mostly cabernet sauvignon, a few acres of cabernet franc and a little merlot. "I had taken some winemaking classes, bought the equipment and just started making wine," he says with a grin. His flagship is a Bordeaux-style blend named Coeur de Leon, half of which is cabernet, the balance equal parts cab franc and merlot.
The DMD's tale is long on history and rich in modern wines of distinction and breed, yet it is still evolving. Like a gemstone in the rough, its facets continue to be polished. For example, next April the AVA's newest, and probably smallest winery, Teachworth, will release a trio of 100-percent varietal Cabernets, two vineyard designates and an estate blend of both vineyards from the 2001 vintage; there will be about 150 cases. "I planted two acres of cabernet in 1997," says Walter Teachworth, a native of Galveston, Texas, of his vineyard in the 500 to 600 foot elevation level at the end of Quail Mountain Lane, just south of Diamond Mountain Road. "One vineyard I call Manzanita Hill, the other Rattlesnake Ridge. My first vintage was [actually a] third-leaf Cabernet from the 2000 vintage, which I'll release as a reserve. I keep the wine in new French oak for 30 months, to give it some proper age before release. I don't need the money," Teachworth asserts, "so I can allow the wine longer time in barrel than most producers. I think time is very important with Cabernet. I decant it as well at the table - at least an hour."
The outspoken Texan says he gets along with everyone on the mountain, especially Brounstein, whom he considers a mentor. In fact, Diamond Creek's winemaker, Phil Steinschreiber, makes Teachworth's wines in the micro-winery on-site. "Al has at least eleven waterfalls on his property," Teachworth reckons, "and I have six." That makes the Texan's property just five waterfalls short of a full Brounstein.
From the first bottling to the very latest release, Diamond Mountain District continues to sparkle with some of Napa Valley's greatest and most distinctive wines, especially its signature Cabernets. Now that you've traveled up the mountain, at least figuratively if not literally, you'll be well advised to add a few of these jewels to your collection.
Based in San Francisco, Contributing Editor Steve Pitcher may be reached via e-mail at wine2words@aol.com
Climbing Diamond Mountain
Visits to Diamond Mountain District wineries and vineyards, located in Calistoga, are by advance appointment only, except Graeser, which is open daily from 10 a.m.to 5 p.m.
Constant Wines
2121 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-0707
www.constantwine.com
Diamond Terrace
1391 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-6926
www.diamondterrace.com
J. Davies (at Schramsberg Vineyards)
1400 Schramsberg Road, (707) 942-4558
www.schramsberg.com
Diamond Creek Vineyards
1500 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-6926
www.diamondcreekvineyards.com
Dyer Vineyard
1501 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-5502
www.dyerwine.com
Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards (DMD vineyard owner)
836 Chiles Avenue (St. Helena), (707) 968-9770 www.andrewgeoffrey.com
Graeser Winery
255 Petrified Forest Road, (707) 942-4437
www.graeserwinery.com
Reverie on Diamond Mountain
1520 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-6800
www.reveriewine.com
Sterling Vineyards (DMD vineyard owner)
1111 Dunaweal Lane, Calistoga, (707) 942-3344
www.sterlingvineyards.com
Teachworth Winery
4451 N. St. Helena Highway, Calistoga, (707) 942-8432
Von Strasser Winery
1510 Diamond Mountain Road, (707) 942-0930
www.vonstrasser.com
Tasting BAR
In the most comprehensive Diamond Mountain District tasting ever assembled, the following wines were evaluated open in May at Diamond Creek Vineyards. They were sampled in roughly ascending order of vineyard elevation, from about 400 feet to 2,100 feet, and are compiled here in similar fashion. Where no case quantity is given, production is usually 1,000 cases or less. Price noted as "$TBD" indicates the bottled wine has yet to be released (most are scheduled for autumn); in such instances, the price for the previous vintage is provided in brackets.
J. Davies, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $60: Slightly minty aromas of blackberry, black cherry, anise and sweet spice, plus a hint of leather. Smooth and velvety with intense, juicy flavors of cassis and red cherry and supple, resolved tannins. An elegant wine that finishes with light touches of mocha, vanilla and toasty oak. Blended with 3 percent malbec. (1,025 cases) Score: 90
Diamond Terrace, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $55: Aromas of blackberry, tobacco leaf, white pepper and sweet, slightly smoky oak. Complex and approachable, this 100-percent Cab offers flavors of ripe, luscious black fruit with a cherry tinge and hints of mocha and vanilla in the long, full finish; medium tannins. (500 cases) Score: 90
Laird Family, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Diamond Mountain Ranch, DMD - $80: This "Diamond Mountain Ranch" designate is not from Sterling's property, but from a lower-elevation site of the same name. Nose of glove leather and ripe bramble berries with flavors reminiscent of black raspberry and black cherry mingle with white chocolate; medium tannins. Score 89
Von Strasser, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Post Vineyard, DMD - $TBD [$60]: Forward, enticing aromas of toasty oak, red meat, cassis-black cherry fruit and dried lavender. Very complex and concentrated with luscious blackberry-cassis fruit tinged with dried herb and subtle mocha. An elegant Cab with ripe, supple tannins. Blended with 10 percent merlot. (1,900 cases) Score: 94
Dyer, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $TBD [$75]: Brambly, ripe blackberry-red cherry aromas with notes of anise and dark chocolate. Full and rich in the mouth with muscular, yet supple tannins and lively flavors of red berry and cassis; long finish. Score: 91
DiGiulio, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $TBD [$85]: Pleasant, quite fragrant aromas of subtle green olive, anise, dried thyme, blackberry and red cherry. Silky smooth and juicy with medium tannins, the wine is brimming with berry-cassis fruit, brown spice and a bright note of red cherry that extends into the lengthy finish. Score: 93
Reverie, 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate, DMD - $55: Nose of subtle green olive, red berry-cassis fruit and star anise framed in toasty oak. Juicy and generous with deep, intense flavors of brambly blackberry and anise seed; medium-full, ripe tannins. Score: 90
Reverie, 2002 Special Reserve, DMD - $75: Slow-to-open nose of dark chocolate and berry-cassis fruit with blueberry and dried herbs. Rich and full bodied with medium-full, chewy tannins, the chocolate note resonates on the palate amid lush berry-cassis fruit that shows great purity and depth. Blended with 10 percent petit verdot and 5 percent merlot. Score: 90
Lokoya, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $TBD [$120]: Intriguing nose of tobacco leaf and subtle green olive, raspberry-cassis fruit, moderately toasty oak, red meat and lead pencil. Complex, ultraplush and concentrated with deep, vibrant flavors that replicate the nose and firm, velvety tannins, this is an elegant, focused, 100 percent Cab with excellent aging potential over the next ten to twelve years. (440 cases) Score: 95
Ramey, 2002 Diamond Mountain District Red Wine, Napa Valley - $65: Attractive, intense aromas of cinnamon toast, black cherry-cassis tinged with blueberry, tobacco leaf and mocha. A powerful yet approachable, densely textured wine with firm, ripe tannins and extracted, kirsch-like flavors that echo the nose. A blend of 65 percent cabernet, 15 percent petit verdot, 11 percent cabernet franc and 9 percent merlot. (1,330 cases) Score: 93
Von Strasser, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $TBD [$50]: This tasty mix of select vineyard sites offers come-hither aromas of mocha, anise, dried herbs and black fruit with some red-berry highlights. Round and luscious, this charming yet powerful wine delivers complex, lip-smacking flavors of mocha-tinged dark berry fruit and ripe, medium tannins. Blended with 13 percent merlot, 5 percent cabernet franc and 4 percent petit verdot. (1,885 cases) Score: 92
Von Strasser, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Vineyards, DMD - $TBD [$60]: The wine's aromas fairly leap from the glass, exhibiting creamy oak, toasted anise seed and blueberry-blackberry fruit of remarkable purity and depth. Juicy and rich with deep, concentrated flavors of blackberry-cassis extract and mocha; finishes with a flourish of red berries and anise. Blended with 13 percent petit verdot and 2 percent merlot. (860 cases) Score: 93
Von Strasser, 2002 Reserve, DMD - $TBD [$100]: Forward, fragrant aromas of cassis, blueberry, raspberry, anise and tobacco leaf. Mouth-filling and luscious with velvety, medium-full tannins, this exquisite blend of equal parts cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot and 20 percent merlot delivers layers of spicy blueberry-accented black fruit of liqueur-like richness spiced with subtle mocha and tobacco notes. (210 cases) Score: 95
Diamond Creek, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Volcanic Hill, DMD - $175: Deep, wonderfully perfumed aromas of cassis, violets and mocha accented with notes of cigar box, vanilla and toasty oak. Rich, luscious and concentrated with medium-full, ripe, velvety tannins and copious black fruit flavors that are amazingly deep and lingering, enhanced by warm spice and a hint of mint in the finish. Built for the long term. (573 cases) Score: 95
Diamond Creek, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Gravelly Meadow, DMD - $175: Shy nose of minerals, cassis and red cherry. Round and luscious with medium tannins, the wine's terroir is evident in the bright flavors of mineral-tinged cassis and cherry, with vanilla and lightly toasty oak emerging in the finish. (466 cases) Score: 91
Diamond Creek, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Rock Terrace, DMD - $175: Shy aromas of briary raspberry-red cherry fruit; leather and spicy oak open with airing. Mouth-filling and concentrated with medium-full tannins, the wine's flavors echo the nose, enhanced by notes of plum compote, orange zest and espresso bean. (498 cases) Score: 90
Graeser, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $29: Distinctive nose of forward oak char and cassis underlain with earthiness. Similar flavors show moderate depth; medium-full tannins. Score: 86
Von Strasser, 2002 Sori Bricco Vineyard Red Wine, DMD - $TBD [$60]: Exhibits shy aromas of dried herbs, mint and ripe raspberry-cassis fruit, yet ultraplush and juicy in the mouth with medium-full, velvety tannins and copious, red berry-cassis flavors. A blend of 60 percent cabernet, 25 percent merlot and 15 percent cab franc. (838 cases) Score 92
Stonegate, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Reserve, Spaulding Vineyard, DMD - $TBD [$50]: Aromas of glove leather, cassis, raspberry and brown spice. Big, almost brawny with firm, ripe tannins, the wine delivers copious dark berry-cassis and plum fruit, rounded out with sweet oak; and finishes with a hint of chocolate. Score: 88
Sterling, 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Diamond Mountain Ranch, DMD - $TBD [$60]: Forward aromas of black currant, cedar, cocoa, espresso and a hint of dried lavender. Mouth-filling and dense with medium-full tannins, the wine offers luscious, cassis-blackberry fruit, a hint of minerality and subtle cinnamon spice in the long finish. (3,200 cases) Score: 92
Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, DMD - $TBD [$75]: Distinctive nose of briary bramble berry, accented with bright blueberry and loamy earthiness. Deeply flavored and viscous with ripe, medium-full tannins, this is a muscular Cabernet brimming with concentrated dark berry-cassis fruit; finishes with subtle notes of white chocolate and white pepper. Score: 94
Martin Ray, 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, Diamond Mountain Vineyard, DMD - $TBD [$70] (barrel sample): Shy, slow-to-open nose of raspberry, cassis and plum with an intriguing hint of red meat and a note of vanilla. Richly textured with medium-full tannins, this mountain-top Cab delivers loads of berry-cassis fruit accented with a defined meatiness; finishing with a creamy vanilla flourish. (1,000 cases) Score: 89
Constant, 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Diamond Mountain Vineyard, DMD - $85: Enticing, complex aromas of ripe cassis, black cherry, dark plum and mocha, plus subtle fresh tarragon notes. Generous and richly textured with bold, extracted flavors of cassis and black cherry tinged with blueberry, oak spice and minerals; medium-full tannins are ripe and supple. Score: 94 - SP
