When Steve MacRostie released his first wine — a 1987 Carneros Chardonnay — there was little doubt this was a Chardonnay world. He couldn’t make enough of it fast enough to keep up.
Too much of a good thing, however, has altered the landscape for the California vintner.
“Chardonnay is very competitive,” MacRostie opined over lunch this week. “The competition isn’t so much from other grape varieties, though there certainly are those. There are just lots and lots of producers making Chardonnay.”
Through the years MacRostie has diversified into other grape varieties, notably Pinot Noir, but also Merlot and Syrah. What hasn’t changed, however, throughout the evolution of the MacRostie winery is the commitment to balance. Or, as MacRostie told me, “wine that tastes like wine.”
Of course, this has been my mantra for some time now. Wines that are overripe and jammy, and too high in alcohol, generally don’t appeal to me. There are a few exceptions, but they are few and far between.
When I come across a producer with a healthy respect for the grape variety and the terroir — understanding that overripe grapes rob wine of its freshness and individual characteristics — I stand up and take notice.
The MacRostie Chardonnays have always done this. From my earliest experiences with MacRostie wines I’ve been impressed by the structure and balance of the Chardonnay.
“It’s always been regarded as an elegant Chardonnay,” MacRostie said. “Fruit forward. We do use French barrels, but only 20 percent new. We strive for a Chardonnay that expresses typicity. It hasn’t lost its Carneros-ness. It’s supple. Not alcolholic or too buttery. Dry without being too austere.”
Indeed, both MacRostie Chards — I tasted the 2006 Carneros ($23) and the 2006 Wildcat Mountain Vineyard ($40) from the Sonoma Coast — have the firm, mouth-watering acidity and a beam of fresh lemon flavor that has been a characteristic of MacRostie Chardonnay from the start.
MacRostie has carried the same philosophy into his Pinot Noir production, eschewing the current fad of making fat, sweet, jammy Pinots that will rack up big scores with certain wine publications. Both the Carneros (the 2006, $30, is now available) and the Wildcat Mountain Vineyard (2005, $45) are beautifully balanced, with plenty of grip on the back end.
Finally there are the Syrah and Merlot, reds that MacRostie has some misgivings about despite the fact both are lovely wines.
“We have stuck with Merlot against the advice of others,” he said. “We’ve focused our efforts there on making a better wine.”
I tasted the 2005 MacRostie Napa Valley Merlot and concluded it belonged in the same group of “value” Merlots from Napa that I touted in a recent column. At $28 this is one of the finest, most satisfying Napa Valley reds to be found (the other Merlots I recommended were Chappellet, Clos du Val and Truchard).
The popularity of Merlot took a hit in the movie “Sideways” from which it still hasn’t recovered. Syrah, on the other hand, simply hasn’t captured the public imagination the way everyone thought it might.
MacRostie’s Wildcat Mountain Syrah ($34) is stylish, with a fair amount of richness and complexity, and good length. Again, in the same vein as the other MacRostie wines, it refuses to hit you over the head with high alcohol or ripe, jammy fruit flavor.
I walked away from the tasting satisfied that I had found yet another California producer intent upon making wines that deliver nuance and finesse. Wines that are fresh, made with a philosophy that is both refreshing and compelling.
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