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- CABERNET SAUVIGNON,10
- "The classic red-wine grape from Bordeaux and the most widely produced"
- "varietal in California, especially the Napa Valley. The wine varies from"
- "delicate to intensely fruity, dark, and high in tannin. Aging is a must, as"
- "young Cabernets are frequently very sharp and rough. Although the grape is"
- "well-suited to California, it is sensitive to growing conditions, and cool"
- "years produce acidic wines lacking body. The best wineries make 100% varietal"
- "Cabernet Sauvignon. Superior wineries include Alexander Valley, Beaulieu,"
- "Burgess Cellars, Cakebread Cellars, Chappellet, Clos du Val, Fetzer, Freemark"
- "Abbey, Heitz, Inglenook, Jordan, Louis Martini, Robert Mondavi, Joseph"
- "Phelps, Rutherford Hill, Sebastiani, Simi, Stag's Leap, and Sterling."
- CHARDONNAY,10
- "California's best white-wine grape, justly famous in France's Burgundy and"
- "Chablis regions. The wine at its best is dry, full-bodied, with an apple-like"
- "aroma. It ranges from fresh and grapy to rich and complex, with a greenish-"
- "yellow to gold color. California Chardonnay does not always equal the best"
- "white Burgundies; the grape yields little and is often blended. State law"
- "permits 49% of a nonvintaged varietal wine and 25% of a vintaged wine to"
- "consist of other grape varieties, but blended Chardonnay is not always worth"
- "the price. Excellent Chardonnays come from Acacia, Alexander Valley, Burgess"
- "Cellars, Cakebread Cellars, Chalone, Chappellet, Freemark Abbey, Heitz,"
- "Matanzas Creek, Robert Mondavi, Simi, Stag's Leap, Sterling, and Stony Hill."
- CHENIN BLANC,10
- "Productive and popular white grape from France's Loire Valley. The wine is"
- "medium-dry to slightly sweet with a 2-4% sugar content. It can be soft and"
- "fruity with a light yellow color, or dryer, full-flavored, and somewhat less"
- "mellow. The dry California version is labeled White Pinot (even though Chenin"
- "Blanc is not a Pinot grape) and is best drunk when young. Sometimes the White"
- "Pinot combines dryness with the fruitiness of Chenin Blanc. Wineries include:"
- "Alexander Valley Vineyards: A new Sonoma vineyard with 250 acres of"
- "varietals. Their Chenin Blanc is dry and particularly good."
- "Chappellet: Excellent, small mountain vineyard and winery in the Napa Valley."
- "The varietals are rich, full-bodied; very dry Chenin Blanc."
- GEWURZTRAMINER,10
- "California's equivalent of the white-wine grape originally from the French"
- "province of Alsace; among the most successful of California's Rhine-type"
- "grapes. 'Gewurz' in German is 'spicy'; the wine is zesty and aromatic."
- "Although the wine is not as remarkable here as it is in France, it is still"
- "good and fresh, light in sweetness and body. The drier wines have a stronger"
- "varietal character. Traminer, related to Gewurztraminer, is less distinctive,"
- "but is a good dry white wine."
- "Gewurztraminer wines are produced by several wineries. Notable ones include:"
- "Chateau St. Jean, Firestone, Matanzas Creek, Joseph Phelps, Rutherford Hill,"
- "Simi, and Stony Hill."
- JOHANNISBERG RIESLING,10
- "The most famous and expensive of the white-wine Rhine grapes. Because of the"
- "climate differences between the chilly Rhine and sunny California, the grapes"
- "mature sooner in the U.S., and have less acidity, tartness, and fruitiness."
- "The White Riesling is nevertheless one of California's best grapes, producing"
- "a fruity, fresh and crisp wine, ranging from dry to sweet, with a flowery,"
- "spicy aroma. The best wines have complexity and finesse similar to Germany's"
- "Aulese wines. The dry California Johannisbergs tend to have a rough after-"
- "taste and are otherwise bland in comparison to their German counterparts."
- "Particularly good wineries include Alexander Valley, Chappellet, Chateau St."
- "Jean, Firestone, Freemark Abbey, Joseph Phelps, Stag's Leap, and Stony Hill."
- PETITE SIRAH,10
- "The name given originally to the superb, purple red-wine grape of France's"
- "Rhone Valley, which produces rich, long-lived wines. In California, though,"
- "the name is also applied to a grape know as Duriff, a less interesting"
- "variety best suited for blending into California Burgundies. Depending on the"
- "climate and wine-making techniques, California Petite Sirahs can be mild,"
- "fruity, and drinkable when young (from warmer regions) or dense, full-bodied,"
- "tannic, and long-lived (from cooler regions). The real Petite Sirah is grown"
- "in small quantities but is becoming increasingly popular in the U.S., and is"
- "an interesting contrast from common red wines."
- "The best wineries are Burgess Cellars, Fetzer, and Joseph Phelps."
- PINOT NOIR,10
- "The immortal red-wine grape of Burgundy, planted with increasing frequency."
- "Partly because of California's growing conditions, our Pinot Noir cannot"
- "rival France's soft, full-bodied, fruity Burgundies. The California wines are"
- "light, thin, and tart, with a light red to ruby color and a fairly low tannin"
- "content which makes them generally ill-suited for aging. Often the aroma is"
- "alluring but the taste disappointing, or vice versa. These wines do not"
- "deserve Pinot Noir's reputation and expensive price, but occasionally a great"
- "Pinot Noir emerges, with rich color and body, complex flavor and long life."
- "The best wineries for Pinot Noir include: Acacia, Beaulieu, Caymus, Chalone,"
- "Firestone, Louis Martini, and Sebastiani."
- SAUVIGNON BLANC,10
- "Also called Fume Blanc, an excellent white grape producing dry, medium-"
- "bodied, fruity wines with an earthy flavor, either in the Loire or dry Graves"
- "style. In California, as in the Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is very often"
- "blended with Semillon grapes, which are more aromatic and perfumed. Conse-"
- "quently, it is hard to treat the two varieties separately. The combination is"
- "used for dry, earthy wines labeled Dry Sauvignon Blanc, Dry Semillon, or Dry"
- "Sauterne; or dryish to sweet, fruity wines, for example Sweet Semillon, Sweet"
- "Sauvignon Blanc, or the sweet wines from 'Chateaus' such as Beaulieu."
- "Other good Sauvignon wineries include Beringer, Cakebread Cellars, Caymus,"
- "Chappellet, Chateau St. Jean, Inglenook, Robert Mondavi, and Sterling."
- ZINFANDEL,10
- "A red grape of unknown European origin now considered California's own, and"
- "certainly its most popular. The quality varies from a vin ordinaire to a"
- "superior varietal wine. The best come from the cooler regions and are light-"
- "bodied and fruity with a raspberry-like aroma. Most can be drunk young, but"
- "those with higher tannin content improve with age. Zinfandel wines from"
- "warmer regions are less impressive, while those from hot areas, or those"
- "produced from grapes harvested too late, may taste heavy and overripe, with"
- "a raisin-like aroma. Zinfandel is also blended into California clarets."
- "Good Zinfandel wines come from Burgess Cellars, Clos du Val, Fetzer, Louis"
- "Martini, Sebastiani, and Simi."
- 1968,8,*,*,*,*,8,8,*,9
- 1969,8,*,*,*,*,8,8,*,8
- 1970,9,8,*,*,*,8,5,*,9
- 1971,7,8,*,*,*,7,6,*,6
- 1972,6,6,*,*,*,6,5,*,5
- 1973,9,8,*,*,*,8,7,*,8
- 1974,10,7,8,7,7,8,6,8,9
- 1975,8,9,8,8,8,9,8,8,8
- 1976,6,8,8,7,8,8,7,8,9
- 1977,5,7,8,8,8,8,8,8,9
- 1978,8,10,9,9,9,9,8,9,9
- 1979,8,8,8,8,8,8,9,8,8
- 1980,9,9,9,9,9,8,8,9,8
- 1981,8,8,8,8,8,8,8,8,8
- 1982,*,9,8,8,8,*,*,9,*