The Tasting Panel magazine

Nov 09

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november 2009 / the tasting panel /  43 Doug Fletcher has been making wines from the Stags Leap District since 1978. As VP of Winemaking for Terlato Wine Group, he reflects back with us as we visit Chimney Rock Winery. "The fruit just stood out as being different," Fletcher tells us, explain- ing that at the time he was working for Martin Ray Winery, where some of the fruit was sourced from the district. "We bought our fruit from Dick Stelt- zner and a couple of other places. The Stags Leap fruit was always . . . well, better, and we didn't have to manipu- late it at all." With a combination of bright fruit and soft tannins, Fletcher admits that it was, and still is, difficult to get tannic wines from SLD. "I like to make wines that are enjoyable early on, and the Stags Leap District wines are a good example of wines that taste good now but are also ageable." Last year, Fletcher was part of the 30th Anniversary Paris tasting. "Stags Leap District came in ahead of Bordeaux— but so did all five of the California wines entered! That's vindication," he laughs. "What we are doing here [at Chimney Rock] is working with natural raw material, and consumers tend to gravitate to these wines, whether they realize why or not." When Tony Terlato, Chairman of Terlato Wine Group and owner of Chimney Rock, wanted to expand varietal horizons within California to produce a collection of wines under the Terlato Family Vineyards label, he also gravitated to fruit from the Stags Leap District. "Tony chose appellations to focus on," explains Fletcher, "such as the Russian River for Pinot Grigio and Pinot Noir, Dry Creek for Syrah and, for Cabernet Sauvignon, Stags Leap District." We walk outside, survey- ing the vines that lead up to the eastern hillsides. Fletcher points to the bare rock outcropping along the cliffs—known as the Stags Leap Palisades—that retains and reflects the afternoon sun, warming nearby vineyards and causing temperatures to rise more quickly than they do in Napa Valley flatlands. While the rocks re-radiate the heat, breezes off the Pacific blow through the small, narrow val- ley like a funnel, running into barriers of hills and moun- tains on three sides of this valley within a valley. Doug Fletcher • CHIMNEY ROCK & TERLATO FAMILY VINEYARDS Winemaker Elizabeth Vianna and Doug Fletcher, VP of Winemaking, Terlato Wine Group, at Chimney Rock, located at the southern end of the Stags Leap District. Chimney Rock and Terlato Family Vineyards SLD Wines Carving out four acres of vineyard space at Chim- ney Rock, winemaker Elizabeth Vianna crafts a rosy, lit- brightly-from-within red in the Terlato Family Vineyards 2005 Stags Leap District Cab; it reflects young vines with pomegranate spice and silky texture. Since 1990, Fletcher has brought out the best of Stags Leap District with the Chimney Rock El- evage Red; the 2005 is lush and OMG opulent, a winding road with curves of dimension. The 2006 Chimney Rock SLD Cab is denser yet. Violets and dark chocolate with gamey savories and a nice weight: power without the edge.

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