New
Winery near Coloma
Promises Rhone with
a View
Wednesday,
April 6, 2005
By: Gary Moffat
|
Mari
Wells sips
wine in front
of the new
David Girard
tasting room
near Coloma. |
I sensed
that David Girard Vineyards
was going to be a class
act from the moment
I pulled into the driveway.
There were no signs
urging "5 MPH
SAVE THE VINES" on
the roadway bisecting
the lower vineyard
because all the lanes
are paved.
Cresting the first
slope, a beautiful,
two-storey stucco building-something
borne from a Tuscan
landscape-comes into
view. A fountain bubbles
near the front door,
and a sprawling patio
drops off to meet a
spacious, gentle pond
with reed-studded banks.
Tree-rimmed
hillsides, planted
in vines as long as
eight years ago, radiate
symmetrically in all
directions. This is
quite possibly the
most stunning setting
in the Foothills.
For nearly two years
now, passersby on Cold
Springs Road just beyond
Gold Hill Vineyards
could only wonder at
what was happening
behind the wrought-iron
fencing that runs the
width of the 85-acre
estate. With the official
opening of the new
tasting room this Saturday
(the same weekend as
the El Dorado Country
Passport Weekend),
however, the newest
stop on the wine trail
will be open for business.
"Everyone is curious," said
Mari Wells, late of
Chatom Vineyards in
Murphys and soon to
be the first full-time
winemaker employed
by the winery. She
succeeds Chris Condos
of Vinum Cellars fame,
winemaker for the first
four vintages, including
50 barrels aging in
the new winery building.
She is working part
time until starting
officially in June.
David Girard, of Walnut
Creek and principal
in a Bay Area law firm,
is the name, the vision
and the financing behind
this obviously costly
undertaking. It is
clear that no expense
was spared in making
this place a showcase-from
the sleek granite counters
in the trinket-free
tasting room to the
Greek colonnade framed
wedding ellipse, a
dramatic site where
loving couples will
soon descend to tie
the knot.
The David Girard facility,
perched at 1,300 feet,
is the execution of
what many a wine enthusiast
could only dream of
accomplishing, yet
it distains the over-embellishment
and excesses seen at
other deep-pocketed
ventures such as Villa
Toscano in Amador County.
This is elegance personified,
and though much has
been accomplished,
it seems merely to
hint at what is to
come.
Said Winemaker Wells: "We
have the structure,
and we have the team
in place. What we're
doing now is the fun
part-creating the personality."
Vibrant and enthusiastic,
it would seem Wells
is very much up to
the task of infusing
soul into this landscape.
A
Taste of David
Girard Vineyards
Although the
winery is not
a part of the
official El
Dorado County
Passport Weekend
event (it is
too new and
does not produce
enough wine
to qualify
for membership),
you can stop
by and check
out the four
wines currently
available for
sale. Chris
Condos was
winemaker.
2001 Cabernet
Sauvignon (El
Dorado), $25:
Nose of dark
chocolate;
flavors of
cherry, anise,
almond and
clove. Spent
20 months on
50% new French
oak, resulting
in smooth tannins.
2001 Viognier-Rousanne
(El Dorado)
$18: Aromas
of jasmine
and honeysuckle;
silky mouthfeel
with loads
of fruit, including
pineapple,
peaches and
pears. Just
200 cases.
2002 Chardonnay
(El Dorado)
$18: Subtle
chard because
barrels used
were neutral
and there was
no malolactic
fermentation.
Crisp fruit
with toasted
pecans on the
finish.
2002 Syrah
(El Dorado)
$28: This one
received a
gold medal
at last year's
El Dorado County
Fair. One hundred
percent syrah
from the vineyards
on Carson Ridge.
Cherry and
ripe raspberries
on the palate.
Just 160 cases
bottled. |
"You want to be
the very best, and
the Foothills are under rated,
so it is possible."
At just 27 years of age,
Wells, who occasionally
moonlights as an American
River rafting guide,
has a lot of winemaking
experience behind her.
As an intern in 1999
and 2000, before graduating
with a dual degree in
viticulture and enology
from U.C. Davis, she
helped make pinot noir
and sparkling wines at
Gloria Ferrer in Carneros.
Then it was off to
Chard Farms in New
Zealand where she worked
the spring harvest
and crushed pinot noir
and what she terms "aromatic
whites". Back
in the USA in time
for her second crush
of the year, she worked
along side legend Merri
Edwards at the Pellegrini
Family Winery in Sonoma
before landing a job
as winemaker at Chatom
in 2002.
She acknowledged, "I
didn't have a lot of
experience, but I had
the right experience
and just sort of went
for it."
One could say the table
has been set at her new
gig. Vineyard manager
Ron Mansfield (owner
of Gold Bud Farms in
Placerville) and Girard
decided to focus on Rhone
style wines. Some 38
acres have been planted
in viognier, marsanne,
roussanne, grenache and
mourvedre. There are
also blocks of cabernet
sauvignon and merlot,
most of which is under
contract to Mondavi.
"I love to brag
about Ron," said
Wells. "He is
so passionate; he has
an amazing palate and
he has the ability
to perfectly match
soils to varietals."
With Rhone wines coming
into vogue, their selection
was prescient. "The
plan was to stay in front
of the market and find
the secret spot before
the rest of the pack
gets there," Wells
added.
Girard purchased the
property in 1994 and
planted the Bordeaux
varietals, with sequential
plantings of the Rhone
grapes following. This
is the fourth leaf for
most of the vines, and
Wells is convinced the
juice will be outstanding.
"Young vines are
great,"
she explained. "They
have a lot of energy,
lots of balance and
beefy tannins."
The David Girard label
has produced about 500
cases of wine thus far,
but Wells plans to crush
up to 75 barrels this
year, yielding around
1,500 cases. Within five
years she hopes to reach
as many as 3,000 cases.
For Wells, a Georgetown-area
resident, it is a dream
come true. "When
I started rafting eight
years ago, I never
thought I'd be involved
in a winery right here."
Wine writer Gary Moffat
owns Carpe Vino, a wine
shop and tasting room
in Old Town Auburn. He
can be reached at 530-823-0320
and gamoffat@pacbell.net.
|
