(May 2016) One of
the marvels I’ve witnessed over the years is that often the most famous
winemakers are the most humble. This is the case with Heidi Barrett, who’s 1992
Screaming Eagle broke the world record for one of the highest priced wines sold
at auction, as well as with Aubert and Bertrand de Villaine from Domaine
Romanee Conti, who lovingly produce some of the most coveted wine in the world
from “God’s vineyards.” More recently I had a similar experience when I met
Paul Draper of Ridge and Steven Spurrier, the man who launched the 1976
Judgment of Paris Tasting.
It happened at one of several Judgment of Paris 40th
Anniversary Dinners in California. This
one was held at the University Club in San Francisco, and was organized by my
friend Cheryl Lincoln. She had arranged for Steven and Paul to present an
amazing selection of eleven wines that she had collected to pair with seven
courses (see wines and menu below).
![]() |
British Sparkling
Against Le Reve
The first course was a selection of appetizers served with
two sparkling wines: Domaine Carneros Le Reve Blanc de Blanc
2008
and a wine made at Steven’s winery in Dorset England called Bridge
Valley Blanc de Blanc 2013. Le
Reve has long been one of my favorite California sparklings, with exquisite
balance and complexity, and it did not disappoint on this occasion. However, when compared to the Bridge Valley
with its razor sharp acid and hints of chalky minerality, La Reve definitely
showed its riper California heritage. I
love both wines, but was especially thrilled with the Bridge Valley, and was surprised
that a few other people did not appreciate its light body and piercing acidity as
much as I did.
Wine Served at the Dinner with Steven's Bride's Valley Sparkling second to the left |
For the remainder of the meal, all the wines, with the
exception of the concluding port, were served blind. Cheryl grouped them in
varietal pairs, with one from California and the other from France. The nearly
fifty dinner guests had to guess the provenance, and then Steven and Paul
facilitated the discussion.
1978 Ridge Montebello
Cabernet Sauvignon Steals the Night
The dinner was progressing nicely, and most guests were able
to determine the wines quite easily, until we came to the clash of the
cabs. You would think that a 1978 Ridge
up against a 1982 Chateau Leoville Las Cases would be easy to determine, but
the exact opposite happened. If we had just used color we would have been fine
because the Ridge was a medium garnet, whereas the Las Cases was a darker ruby. However on the nose the two wines were quite
surprising. The Ridge opened with copious amounts of barnyard bret, causing
most people to place it squarely in Bordeaux. The Las Cases, on the other hand,
showed classic cassis and herbal notes, but was almost too green with tarragon
and pepper.
As the wines opened up, the bret blew off the “Bordeaux,”
and the wine evolved into a mesmerizing symphony of dried berry, spice,
leather, fine-grained tannins, and a very long finish. It had a wonderful
texture that enticed you to taste it time and again. The “herbal” wine
continued to stay in the green camp and developed complex earthy notes. Conversation around the table was heated as
everyone discussed the two wines.
Then Steven asked Paul to tell us which wine was his, and most
were surprised when he pointed to the wine with the bret. Just when many were thinking what an
excellent Bordeaux it was, we discovered it was from the Santa Cruz mountains.
It almost felt like the Judgment of Paris all over again!
The Humble Paul Draper of Ridge |
Afterwards we asked Paul to talk about how he made the 1978
Ridge, and he said he didn’t do much at all.
He gave all of the credit to the Montebello vineyard site, and reminded
us that he had never even trained as a winemaker. Instead he said he read a lot
about how to make great Bordeaux, and then let the wine make itself as
naturally as possible. He was so humble and self-effacing, and didn’t seem to
want to take any credit for the great masterpiece we were tasting. Even at the great old age of 1978, the Ridge
Montebello was fresh, flavorful, and enticing.
Later I asked Paul about the bret, and he grinned and said,
“Yes, we do have a little bret in some of our older bottles of Ridge.”
Steven Spurrier – A
True Gentleman Exuding Honor
I had met Steven several years earlier at a Decanter tasting in London, but had
never had a chance to talk to him much before this evening. Despite the fact that he had celebrated his
70th birthday in 2011 with his first Bride Valley harvest, he is
still incredibly good-looking, dashing, and the ultimate British gentleman. He
spoke eloquently about the wines, and described his journey to California in
1975 to select the wines for the Judgment of Paris tasting. On that journey he
met Paul, and they’ve been good friends every since.
Towards the end of the evening, I approached Steven to thank
him for helping to put California wines on the world map. I told him I was a
fifth generation California, and that what he had done meant a lot to me. Then
I asked him a question that had always puzzled me, “How did you decide to
feature California wines against the greatest wines of France?”
“Oh,” he said, “it wasn’t my idea. It was Patricia Gallagher’s.”
“Patricia?”
“Yes, my partner in the wine school in Paris. She was American and thought it would be fun
to feature California wines to celebrate 1976.
She was always telling me how great the wines were, so she did the
advance trip to Napa, and then I came over later to make the final selection.”
“Really?” I said. “How amazing! Where is she now? Why isn’t she here?”
“She’s off sailing the Adriatic with her husband,” Steven
responded with a charming smile. “She
love’s sailing.”
As I walked away, I thought how humble and honorable Steven
was to give all of the credit to Patricia.
Many people would not do that – especially since he was the person who
facilitated the famous tasting. It did, however, make me want to meet Patricia,
the sailor, even more.
So as I departed that delightful dinner, incredibly
impressed with the amount of planning and creativity Cheryl had employed in
pairing the wines and food, I also left with a deeper respect for Paul and
Steven. Obviously they are both brilliant and talented professionals who have
offered much to the world of wine, but they are also very honorable and humble
human beings.
Cheryl Lincoln, the Brilliant Organizer of the Event |