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French Heritage, Napa Terroir BEAUCANON ESTATE IS CHÂTEAU CANON'S SISTER WINERY AT HISTORIC LONGWOOD RANCH by Deborah Parker Wong / photos by Hardy Wilson E arly morning mist from nearby San Pablo Bay shrouds the vineyards of southern Napa Valley but it soon dissipates and reveals the promise of perfect spring days. On a May morning at Beaucanon Estate, which lies just east of the city of Napa along the Silverado Trail, you can almost see the vine shoots growing. Rich History Beaucanon's estate vineyards are planted on the historic Longwood Ranch, a place with a storied past that reaches back to the earliest days of settlement in Napa Valley. Longwood once formed the heart of Rancho Yajome, a 6,652-acre tract of land that was granted in 1853 to Jose Manuel Salvador Vallejo, the younger brother of General Mariano Vallejo. The ranch was originally named in the 1860s for the long row of old-growth oak trees that still border the Napa River, which runs below the property. By 1912, it was a thriving prune orchard and 60-acre market garden owned by a prosperous dairyman named William Watt. Winegrowing history began at Longwood when the gravelly, sandy clay soils here were first planted to Chardonnay in the late 1970s. Modern Stewardship In 1989, the estate came into the hands of de Coninck family of St.-Émilion when Jacques de Coninck and his children Louis and Chantal divested from a larger property in St. Helena and added the historic site to their vineyard holdings. As owners of several estates in the Bordeaux region of CanonFronsac, including the famed Châteaux Canon, Bellevue Figeac and Junayme, the de Coninck family have been growing and making wine since the 1740s. Louis learned winegrowing at his family's estates in Canon-Fronsac and now shares ownership of Beaucanon with his sister, Chantal. They undertook the replanting of Longwood Ranch in 1996 with the help of Bordeaux consultant Xavier Choné, who conducted extensive soil surveys and increased the density of the plantings to improve wine quality. Today, 80 acres of the 98-acre estate is planted to three clones of Cabernet Sauvignon (169, 191 and 337) on St. George rootstock with the remainder planted to Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and other red Bordeaux varieties. Due to the valley's high water table, De Coninck is able to dry-farm, and the organic estate, which is pruned for extremely low yields, produces about 12,000 cases annually. A trademark of de Coninck's winemaking is his preference for an elongated barrel shape known as the cigar which allows for more lees contact and builds character in wines such as his Chardonnay. Bright Future From its humble beginnings as the site of a 19thcentury candle factory and after decades under the hoe as a market garden, de Coninck's vision for Beaucanon includes the completion, expected by 2015, of a new winery and natural cave dug into the steep hillside overlooking the vineyards. The winery's current portfolio includes a superblypriced, expressive Beaucanon 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon ($35) showing pure cassis and plum fruit with spicy black licorice and finely resolved tannins. De Coninck is developing a five-variety Bordeaux blend icon wine timed for release with the debut of the new winery. In what might be seen as an homage to his long heritage of winegrowing in Canon-Fronsac, de Coninck recently released his first Beaucanon Merlot ($30), a wine with smoke and anise-scented red plum and cherry fruit and deeper notes of brown spice and leather that does credit to the cool 2010 vintage. By creating authentic wines many of which exceed expectations for their price point, the de Coninck family has insured the future of winegrowing at historic Longwood Ranch and painted a bright picture of the future at Beaucanon Estate. Beaucanon Estate is distributed exclusively by Hillside Wines & Spirits in Southern California and by Regency Wines Nevada in Las Vegas. 84 / the tasting panel / june 2013 TP0613_080-119.indd 84 5/23/13 5:30 PM