Tasting through Time with Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock is located in the Stags Leap District of Napa Valley. It was originally established in 1980 by Hack and Stella Wilson on the site of a 185 acre golf course. Currently, the winery focuses on intelligent and sustainable grape farming combined with a soft touch in the cellar from winemaker, Elizabeth Vianna. I had the opportunity to taste with Elizabeth Vianna earlier this week at a private event hosted by another Houston wine writer, Jeff Kralik, who writes under the name of The Drunken Cyclist.

Vianna's goal is to allow the unique Stags Leap District soil and the fruit it produces to be showcased in distinctive wines that display a true sense of place. The Stag's Leap AVA is a smaller and cooler appellation within Napa Valley that is known for creating Cabernet Sauvignon wines that combine both power and grace in the glass.The wines come from estate grown grapes which are hand harvested before being vinified in small lots from the forty distinct vineyard blocks located across the 120 acre estate which is now owned by the Terlato family.

Vianna has been at Chimney Rock since 1999 where she began working as a harvest intern. She later became the assistant winemaker in 2002 before being named head winemaker in 2005. Vianna brought a pair of whites, along with two Chimney Rock red wines from each decade starting in the 1980s, and then concluded with the current releases. This was an exceptional opportunity to taste the evolution of the wines from the estate over a more than 30 year time span.

The Wines:

Chimney Rock Elevage Blanc 2020 and 2016 is described as "the white wine for red wine drinkers." It is a Bordeaux-inspired blend utilizing Sauvignon Gris and Sauvignon Blanc which is fermented in equal parts in new French Oak barrels, neutral French Oak barrels, and stainless steel barrels before aging for 6 months before bottling. Dry, full bodied and rich with a stone fruit and citrus character and a lingering lush caramelized finish. Find the 2020 on the winery website for $50 a bottle.

Chimney Rock Stags Leap District 1984 and 1985 are blends that were composed from across the estate to achieve a balance of the finesse and power created by the different terroir elements of the estate. These two vintages were produced under winemaker, Philip Togni, and are primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon with some Merlot. Dry, full bodied,

Chimney Rock Stags Leap District 1992 and 1998 Doug Fletcher oversaw the creation of these two wines. He is known for his "balanced vine viticulture" method of working with nature, he took over as winemaker in 1987. Dry, full bodied

Chimney Rock Stags Leap District 2002 and 2006 These were the first two reds that we tasted that Vianna had overseen, as the assistant in 2002 and then as head winemaker for the 2006 vintage. Dry, full bodied,

Chimney Rock Stags Leap District 2012 and 2019 Dry, full bodied

Chimney Rock Elevage Stags Leap District 2019 is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Verdot, and Cabernet Franc which is fermented in stainless steel vats before aging for 18 months in new French oak barrels. Dry, full bodied, with silky tannins and lush dark fruit, and hints of fresh herbs.

Chimney Rock Tomahawk Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District 2018 is sourced from a cooler site on the southernmost point of the estate which features multiple soil types. It is fermented primarily in stainless steel vats (with 10% fermented in new French oak) before aging for 18 months in new French oak barrels. This 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine was the most aromatic with classic dark fruit, cassis, and chocolate notes along with hints of mint, dry and full bodied with a savory edge and a rich, lengthy finish. This was the most powerful of all the reds tasted.

Not all of these wines are available on the website but they are all highly recommended should they be found on a wine list or in a wine shop. Age worthy yet with a suppleness that makes even the newer vintages a pleasure to drink now.

Lust Zinfandel 2007

My husband loves this wine so he purchased quite a few bottles at a recent Michael~David dinner that we had attended. Last night, I decided to open a bottle to serve with dinner. I was making a roasted southwestern pork tenderloin, sweet potato fries (w/ chipolte ketchup) and a salad consisting of baby lettuce (fresh from my garden) with strawberries, red bell peppers, red onions and walnuts tossed with a white balsamic-raspberry vinaigrette. This turned out to be a great pairing. It is a bold wine that really stood up to the strong chipolte seasoning while complementing the fruit flavors. I opened the bottle a 1/2 hour before I served it as I have found this wine to be more enjoyable when I do so. The Lust Zinfandel by Michael~David 2007 was a dark purple color with a ruby rim. It has intense aromas of very ripe mixed berries and baking spices-both allspice and ginger with hints of cedar. It has flavors of creme de cassis, milk chocolate and also more of the baking

Nocera - A Native Grape from Sicily

Nocera is a native grape from Sicily. It comes from the Messina province which is located in the northeast. Nocera is a quality red wine grape that is most known as a blender in the red wines of the Faro DOC. I had the opportunity to taste some pure versions (which according to Wine Searcher are rare) this week at a trade tasting held at Roma Restaurant in Houston. Wine production in the region dates back to the 14th Century BC, however, phylloxera decimated the vineyard area in 1881 leaving it at a fraction of its original size. The area boasts a Mediterranean climate with sunny days and coastal breezes, moderate rainfall, and mild winters, all ideal for grape growing. The Nocera grape is a bluish/black color and has a thick skin which allows for the production of structured wines with prominent tannins which are balanced by good acidity. High alcohol is common. Red wines produced from the grapes are an intense ruby color with purple highlights and aromas and flavors of dark fruits a

The Salta Tour 2012

Vine Connections and Pioneer Wine Company hosted a seminar and tasting event for Houston's wine trade and media at Backstreet Cafe yesterday. All but two of the wines were from the Salta Province of Argentina. Salta is the most northern wine region in Argentina lying close to the Bolivian border. The climate is very extreme due to the high altitude. Plantings start at 5,000 feet above sea level and climb to 9,000 feet, making these vineyards the highest in the world. The intense sunlight the area receives helps to create grapes with more anthocyanins, these are the color pigments which result in softer tannins, lower astringency and more intense flavor. The wines produced are extremely pure, concentrated and terroir specific. Torrontes Riojano which is considered the best of the three Torrontes clones is the most widely planted grape with plantings of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat increasing. The seminar started with a tasting of four Torrontes wines, three from diff

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