The fiction of cult wine

The word "cult" gets thrown around a lot in the wine industry. The idea of cult wine started in the 1990s with the rise of critically acclaimed, limited production California cabernet sauvignons such as Bryant Family Vineyard, Grace Family Vineyards, Harlan Estate and Screaming Eagle. The initial prices of these wines were high to start with, but not absurdly so. Bryant released at $36, Grace Family at $25, Harlan at $65 and Screaming Eagle an astonishing $50. These big names aside, the first California wine to actually eclipse the triple digit price tag was Diamond Creek with their 1978 Lake Vineyard release. It wasn't until customers began flipping the wines at auction for many times what they paid to the winery after the wines received numerous 99 and 100-point scores from Robert Parker that their prices began their stratospheric rise. The age of cult wine was born.

A drive up Eastside Road (with stops at Copain, Marcassin and J Vineyards and Winery)

Tasting Room at Copain Wine Cellars

After judging the NextGeneration Wine Competition (results now posted), I had a an afternoon free in the Russian River Valley AVA. I only had one appointment made ahead of time, and planned to just drive around and see what I could find after my first stop. The day before the competition, I contacted Copain Wine Cellars via Twitter to arrange a visit. After the unveiling of the sweepstakes winners, I made my way up Eastside Road to one of the most beautiful views in Sonoma. The winery overlooks the Russian River and the vineyards that line the banks. Unfortunately, my appointment did not make it on to their calendar, but I did still get to taste through the wines that they had open. First up was 2009 Tous Ensemble Viognier from Mendocino County. This was a nice crisp and acidic viognier with notes of citrus, melon and honeysuckle on both the nose and palate. The highlight of the lineup for me was the 2010 P2, a blend of 50% pinot noir and 50% pinot gris co-feremented. This unique red wine was filled with strawberry and floral aromas. The flavors of tart cranberries were quite intense and complemented the zesty herb flavors of savory and thyme. It is a good thing that Copain decided to make more of this after the initial vintage was bought in its entirety by the Napa culinary mecca, The French Laundry. The Les Voisins pinot noir and syrah that I tasted were very good wines, but did not meet the expectations I had from comments about Copain on Wineberserkers.com. The 2009 Les Voisins Pinot Noir was a blend of vineyards from the Anderson Valley. It was a typical pinot with hints of brush, red raspberry, strawberry, hints of spice, nice tannins with just a touch of cherry cola and violets. It was very refined when compared to many California pinots. The Les Voisins Syrah from the Yorkville Highlands was bright purple, with big fruit, grippy tannins and woody herbs. Both were very good wines, just not anything special. The two single-vineyard designated wines that I did get to try did approach being special wines. The 2007 James Berry Les Copains was a blend of 40% Grenache, 40% Mouvedre and 20% Syrah. This sample showed big, yet supple dark fruits along with smooth tannins. It was well balanced and provided a long, rather complex finish. Likewise, the 2007 Alder Springs "Spirit Rock" Syrah was impressive. It had a very aromatic, floral and fruity nose. The tannins were much grippier than in the GSM, but still refined. Blackberry and blueberry jam combined with a Rhônish meatiness and subtle herbs to produce a quite tasty wine. I can see why the buzz with Copain lies with their reasonable prices (all the wines I tried were less than $42 a bottle) and quality (higher-end) single-vineyard labels. The view alone is worth a visit.