Russell From - Herman Story Winery
Vinfolio Winemaker of the Year 2007
It has been another whirlwind year for domestic wines at Vinfolio. I have ranged from California’s Santa Ynez Valley to Oregon’s Willamette Valley to discover the top new wines available. Out of 1200 wines tasted, I have gathered 25 (the top 2%) of what I feel are the very best examples for your examination at the end of the year. This is also the time where I announce my Winemaker of the Year 2007. You are accustomed by now to see a short bulleted list of some key statistics for the year. All the answers will be revealed in the morning as to what is on the list but here are some tantalizing clues!
- 1200 – wines tasted in 2007
- 896 – miles between Santa Ynez, CA and Dundee, OR (google.com maps)
- 100 – the number of points for Kenneth Juhasz’s Auteur Shea Vineyard, again
- 95.84 – the average score of The Top 25 list (96.16 in 2006)
- 75% - the percentage of the list’s Pinot Noir made by Kenneth Juhasz (hmmm)
- 54 – the average price in dollars ot The Top 25 list ($52.92 in 2006)
- 18 – the number of vineyard designated or Estate grown (dirt matters)
- 9 - the number of Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux styled blends (the top category)
- 8 - the number of returning wines from last year’s list with new vintages
- 7 – the number of Oregon and Washington wines, (two more than 2006)
- 4 - the number of Cabernet Sauvignon,/blends from Washington (one in 2006)
- 3 – the number of states included in the list
- 2 - most placements in the list, accomplished by four different wineries
- 1 – varietals making their debut, Grenache from two producers
- 0 – the number of Zinfandel – the most significant varietal missing from the list
Bringing you greatness in 2007
The Top 25 list is intended to recognize the wines that offer what I call “repeatable excellence”. A wine may score 100 points with me but if there is only enough for taking care of the immediate requirement then it usually won’t make the list. I try to identify wines early and if they have potential for inclusion on the list then I will put some into the deepest depths of the warehouse, sometimes as early as the spring. What better time to bring out the best of the year than now?I should mention that a lot of what I do never translates to inclusion in the Top 25 list but they are nevertheless significant milestones on what Vinfolio offers that is so unique.
- The 2006 Auteur magnums. How do you top offering one 100 point wine in 2006? Commission an exclusive bespoke run of a very limited number of magnum sets from last year’s Vinfolio Winemaker of the Year and be the first to offer them to the world including wines that will not be released for six months (and they are 100 pointers too)
- Laying the groundwork for spring – like a good gardener, I started looking ahead to the opportunities we don’t expect to sprout until early 2008. Trips, tasting and negotiation will come to fruition in March and April. Stay tuned, some of these wines may wind up on next year’s Top 25 list!
- Staying ahead of the curve – This is something we are traditionally successful at; having an opinion on a wine months before it is reviewed elsewhere positions us to influence the market in ways that ultimately benefit our clients. At the end of the day this is why you read The Wilder Side of California. You have come to find value in what I write about, and my commitment to our clients is to inform them on the best wines I experience, every week.
Doug Wilder – Vinfolio Director of California Acquisitions and Sales November 30, 2007
Shall we get started?
The Winemaker of the Year for the last two years has been pretty straight-forward formula: Make a 100 point wine and have other high scoring wines in the mix and that is all you need. The last three years have recognized very exciting wines reaching the pinnacle of perfection. NOTE: Winemaker of The Year was reinstituted in 2005. Here is the list of Vinfolio’s Top Wines of the year beginning in 2004, and the winemaker.
2004 - 2002 Buccella Cabernet Sauvignon 100 points Mark Herold
2005 - 2002 Scholium Project The Sylphs, Chardonnay, 100 points, Abe Schoener
2006 - 2005 Auteur Pinot Noir Shea Vineyard, 100 points, Kenneth Juhasz
2007 – Here is where the Story gets really good
In 2007, I recognize a producer that is on the cusp of exciting things. In 2006, I sampled the 2004 vintage of these wines ( I believe they had been sent to me from the Central Coast) Without much in the way of context or information they seemed to be just below the threshold of what I was looking for and became no more than a footnote in my spreadsheet. In spring of 2007 I had a chance to taste this producer’s wines over several hours with him in my office. What I experienced was the biggest step up in quality and appeal of any producer in my experience from one vintage to another. And the wine that made me swoon?Grenache, of course. Grenache gets my attention when it is vibrant and concentrated. I tasted what I considered my “benchmark” in New York years ago and since then some producers have been close but not as good. That is until someone produced a single vineyard Grenache from Santa Ynez Valley that for me was off the charts.
Russell From, Herman Story Winery – Vinfolio Winemaker of the Year 2007
Central Coast native Russell From took an unconventional path to arrive here today. An Agriculture major from Cal Poly- San Luis Obispo, he slid into the winery scene nearly by accident. It wasn’t long before he met his eventual business partner, McPrice Myers (of Barrel 27) and discussions of making wine together, and separately began in earnest. Russell’s label, named in honor of his grandfather was launched with the 2001 vintage and immediately captured the attention of Robert Parker.
His first couple vintages were invested mostly paying dues and learning lessons about what worked or not. Once he got involved with the fruit from Larner Vineyard in 2003, his star began to rise, receiving his first 90+ point scores from The Wine Advocate for the Syrah and Grenache from this site. The 2005 vintage has proved to be the “coming out party” for Herman Story Winery; first there were the Vinfolio reviews from tasting in May:
2005 Grenache, Larner Vineyard (VF 96)
2005 Syrah, Larner Vineyard (VF 95)
2005 Syrah, White Hawk Vineyard (VF 93)
These reviews were then largely validated by The Wine Advocate, Issue 172 three months later with a WA 94 for the White Hawk, and identical WA 93 for the pair of Larner reds. Parker referred to the Larner Grenache as “one of the finest made in California” and further identified it as “a potential Grand Cru site”. Please join me in congratulating Russell From of Herman Story Winery on his accomplishment.