Rudy Kurniawan a well known self proclaimed expert on his ability to judge a bottle of wine and magically tell you if it were real or counterfeit has been arrested and faces up to ten years in a federal prison. What gave Mr. Kurniawan this great knowledge? Well first it wasn’t some wine course, and it wasn’t some god given palate, no he was just the loudest person in the room. And being so he shouted down everyone else and found himself in the position of expert. Yes in the absence of leadership or confidence you relinquish your standing and become a follower. Now it must be said that Rudy had help in the form of Auction houses, restaurants, and wine collectors in general. You see he would sell huge lots at Auction of the greatest labels known. He was nicknamed, Mr Conti, after the famous and greatest Burgundy label Domain de La Romanee Conti. He purchased many great bottles at auction and could be found with the heads of the Auction houses till late at night in some of the greatest wine destinations. A regular at
Daniels, Cru, Veritas where you need a month to read the wine list. The wine people and restaurant owners drooled all over themselves when he arrived. The anticipation of what he would open whether it was brought in with him or ordered off the list. Dinner bills usually exceeded ten thousand dollars.  I met Mr Kurniawan about 7 years ago and for the record did not like him very much. An elite from a world of elites so I made sure I gave him a wide birth. But many did not and it is a shame because great damage has been done to the very core of the auction system and the people who have tasted wines that were not real.

The FBI arrested Mr Kurniawan in Los Angeles and was ordered held by a New York Judge. He was found with Many counterfeit bottles of D.R.C. and other labels. He was also found to have all the tools necessary, a virtual lavatory to produce counterfeit bottles. The tragedy is this could have been avoided if the community as a whole would have policed this man with a little due-diligence. He claimed to come here in the 1990′s and attend Cal State Northridge. He said he was Indonesian and his family had great wealth from their dealings in China. This was how he afforded all those great bottles, dinners and $1500.00 dollar shirts he was glad to tell you about. But he who proclaims he’s an expert and shouted the loudest must be above suspicion. So how many bottles lay in collectors cellars that are now suspect? How do we trust the Auction Houses? What about all the up and coming wine people who tasted with Rudy to further their wine education? That education is now on shaky ground. Why did this person who was never at a tasting I held in the 1980′s or 1990′s and came from nowhere given so much credibility?

He was not the first of course and will not be the last but as P.T. Barnum was credited, “There’s a sucker born everyday”! Lest we forget the name Hardy Rodenstock, Look it up! Or for you local boys a certain store from Glendale rings a bell?
The aftermath is because Rudy was a pure sociopath. People who bought his wines won’t admit they’re fake, or won’t admit they bought them from him. You see where this is going? How much of the worlds 1978 Romanee Conti is real? How much 1945
Mouton or 1961 Lafite? The auction houses are not doing enough, they should demand receipts from original purchases, and do background checks on their providers. In the end there is a lot of phony watches out there and if you want one just go out to any corner in Brooklyn. To the credit of many of the world’s great producers they’re starting to put micro chips in labels but that won’t help the old wines. And more high end producers should start this practice so our kids can have a starting date back to credibility.
Now this is a tough pill to swallow but if you have purchased wine directly or indirectly from Rodenstock or Kurniawan then you owe it to the community to reveal that prior to reselling. If you do not then you are as big a crook as they are!

Beware of that which is too good to be true for usually it is!

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com

Left to the business community as a whole wine has become, well a business. The art of making a fine wine is replaced by numbers. Example, instead of native yeast, cultivated super yeast so everything finishes no matter how ripe, instead of oak barrels, oak chips, instead of green drops, every berry hits the fermenter. Cheap corks, cheap bottles, cheap labels and cheap salary cost. Does anyone believe the wines of Mondavi, B.V. and Beringer are the same as they once were? Corporate could never conceive of such sacrifice to quality ratios, only the bottom line.

Passion squandered, Art Censored, and all in the name of profit. I say nay, and will forever fight the battle. Wine is not beer, it is a higher calling and I love beer! But this beverage is suppose to be something more. It’s suppose to be an expression of all that is good, all that is right, and arose that passion within ourselves. Gallo has a Million Gallon Tank, the biggest tank we own is 900 gallons. On second thought given the choice between wine from a million gallon tank and Beer, well that’s a no brainer.

No for me it’s the road skyward, the hard road to originality. I don’t suggest my way is the only way but I won’t have censorship disguised as profit stop me. I often sit and wonder what Rembrandt would have said if told he could not use green, or blue or red paint. If  Michael Angelo could not use marble, instead only granite. Let’s make sure I’m clear I’m not putting us in a class of such royalty but the example works and get’s the point across. Art vs. profit, expression vs. censorship, Corporate control vs. self control? You tell me. I’ve said it before if you’re going to consume to get annihilated, then drink cheap. If you’re going to truly enjoy the ultimate beverage and appreciate it for all it is, that which is beyond a simple drink then do it well. If budgetary considerations are a factor then drink better but drink less you will be happier and healthier because you did.

“They that compromise their ethics, also sacrifice their soul” Who said that? Me!

To life without compromise.

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com

Art Credit to artist Kowta Rammohan Sastri

Too many times in our life’s we bow to the loudest most dominate in the room giving into this so called expert for fear of embarrassment. The plain truth is many of these experts are snobs, elitist, who have no better palate than your own. I do believe knowing about a subject is a personal adventure. But it is your choice to listen or not. Knowing all the dirt on a family won’t improve the wines. Only the Vineyard and wine making practices can do that and only your tastes will give you the feedback necessary to enjoy or not what you are drinking. I say some of these writers should go look for work as a professor somewhere. Because then you would have a captive audience that’s there for that purpose. I don’t know about you but if I want to know something I ask? Because you’re an expert on history, it won’t make you an expert on wine! They are not exclusive to one another and that’s the Truth.

In the future we should have a group of tasters not an individual scoring wine. They should be people with experience measured in decades not years. They should be in the business of enjoyment, know the Vineyard and Winery. They should not compare notes with one another, should score with “No” chatter, in isolation, then send their scores to someone who will compile them and give the net weighted average. All text should be compared, then publish the most common amongst the tasters.
In this way you get several trained tasters averaging the score to make the final number more believable.

Anyway that’s my take what about you?

To net weighted averages and history upon request,

Greg Linn
greg@greglinnwines.com
 

But here’s something that you should consider and may use for motivation purposes. At one time I was a large consumer of French wines. First Bordeaux then gravitating to Burgundy. White and red Burgundy, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Yes and I bought the best Leflaive, Coche, DRC, Leroy, Rousseau, Dujac and many others. Grand Cru and only the best would do, and believe me it cost dearly. However, as the 2005 wines were released the cost became astronomical. Bottles that had cost $100 for years, were selling for $200.The bottles that sold for $250.00 were over $500.00 and the bottles that sold for $400 were now topping $1000.00. If you wanted to buy a single bottle of La Tache $2500.00 to $3000.00,  a bottle of Romanee Conti, $5000.00 to start and up from there.

These examples are too vast to name them all, and Bordeaux is the same and in some cases more! If you want to see the truth go to Wine Searchers for proof. Now all Wine makers think they make good wine and some like me think we make great wine. I have blinded my wines against the World’s best for many of my customers, family and the wine writing community. They have always done me proud and I will continue to show up with bottles in hand at any tasting where the labels are turned inward. Let the cards fall where they may I always say! The prices of these wines are up because the demand worldwide for big labels is huge. It use to be we were the Worlds big consumer, now Hong Kong is buying up large amounts and selling it for even more. Bordeaux has a short memory and so pay to play is there attitude. Forget the many collectors that were there in the day when vintages were not flying off the shelves.

But this blog is about more than our wines, it’s about the motivation these extreme prices have given me. You see I can’t afford those wines anymore and so I strive to make wines that are as good. Wines I crave to open, for myself and others. Wine of great structure and great finesse. When asked what I like to drink I answer my wines. Our wines are pure, they are low in alcohol, They are made with the least of interference. Great wine is made in the vineyard. And here’s the best part, at $89.00 a bottle, they’re a bargain! Never thought I’d say that but it has now become true. Yes on a world stage we take no back seats, we coward to no one, we are in the front row, and if you don’t believe me blind us and see where the cards fall.

To one hell of a bargain,

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com
www.greglinnwines.com

A science fiction movie, I think not! Yes the favorite wines of your so called  great wine makers are interestingly made in much the same manner. Destined for the scrap heap of liquid retirees, or the Porcelain Alter. Science in all its great advances has altered our approach to Wine Making. The advent of stainless steel as a vessel to ferment, blend, stabilize is a good example of the up side. But also the discussion of fixing, manipulating Mother Nature, or the creating of a wine because you were too lazy to do the work in the vineyard. Maybe it was a cost consideration, just too expensive to do it right. So in come the grapes, over ripe, under ripe and the Doctor is in, prescribing maximum interference. Yes the chef puts all the ingredients on the table and gets to work. I for one have had enough.

Like processed foods they just don’t digest very well, and my stomach turns at the thought of such creations. Frankenwines, yes they are in abundance, and you can pick them up on any shelf, on any wine list, and normally they score well.  Why, because most of the Wine writers are con artists, quick with a pen, great with the art of language, but their palates are no more advanced as yours or mine. In fact many are much less! If they tell you it’s good then blindly you march to the store and buy! Sounds like the Pied Piper!

You buy, you store, and you regret! But this is not about Wine Writers, the poor soul’s who have been fooled over and over again. Not knowing the difference between, tartaric acid, and the real thing. No this is about the Monster Makers who have the right, but should be up front. You see, why is it you don’t know, why is it you are not aware of what you ingest? I don’t know about you but I want the choice to consume or not, that which is not natural to the grape. A simple request, but is it?

We are required to run simple tests on or wines. These tests will not measure the addition of tartaric acid, or potassium just the total acid. They will not measure additions of beetroot sugar, cultivated yeast, just the finished alcohol. They don’t measure copper, Water content, sorbic acid,(by product of egg whites) or any other magical formula some future Doctor has fabricated. It would behoove you to be more diligent, more patient with your purchases, and it might even be more cost effective. Why?

A Frankenwine will most diffidently die an early death! It will implode much earlier then a natural wine. And in the end your cellar will be much more confident. How many Pinot’s have you held just to serve them three years later and there D.O.A.. But if a wine is in balance, and has been made of it self, your chances or reward will be there down the road. The alternative is simple:

A hand from a union painter + a forearm from a Boxer + a Bicep from a Weight lifter +  a chest from a Football player, well guess I’ve said enough.

Hears to the burning of the tower, and eliminating the Monster,

Greg
greg@grelinnwines.com
Unfiltered Wine Report

Photo credit goes artist William Underwood and you can see his work at www.williamtunderwood.com

I have been lucky enough to fly all over this Country, and many places in the World and can’t tell you how disappointing it is to taste a bottle of wine you are fond of only to find it D.O.A.. I was in Hawaii recently, ordered a bottle of my wine, and it was just delivered the day before by the distributor. The wine was dead, I only found out then that the storage they had was not temperature controlled. I ordered a bottle of expensive Italian wine in Shanghai China, Again Dead. I almost can forgive an up and coming region of this savage treatment, but here in the U.S., Come on?

Let me give you some suggestions that may or may not help. If you think a bottle of wine is as important as the food you’re eating with it, then demand storage. If I walk into a restaurant and order a bottle of wine I demand to feel it before it’s open. If it’s warm, I refuse it, simple as that. If the food is too good to stop dinning there then I bring a bottle with me. If they won’t let you then move on! If I walk into a wine shop and things are not air conditioned in the summer or too hot from heaters in the winter, I move on. You see we store our wines at 55 degrees before they go to Market. We are very careful with your investment while it’s still in our care and expect others to do the same. The truth is we’re naive, and expecting people to invest in the equipment necessary to store wine properly is a stretch at best. You need to hold them accountable. I ask you this, would you eat eggs that were not refrigerated, Milk, Meat, Fish, Vegetables. Then why do you accept wine that’s not stored properly. Wine is a perishable item, no difference, and your cost at a restaurant is, in many cases the biggest financial part of the meal. Same if you buy it at a retail shop and bring it home. I don’t expect all restaurants or wine stores to keep wine at 55 degrees but is it asking too much for 65 degrees.

Like many winerys we have had people return bottles that if consumed from a proper cellar would be great. However, since somewhere in its life it was mistreated the wine has suffered significantly. For experiment sake I give you this suggestion. Take any bottle of wine, open another identical bottle and drink half of each bottle. Put a cork in both, and put one in the refrigerator, and leave one out on the counter. Check both the next day, and the day after, then see what you get. In fact the only way I store a bottle of wine that was open is to put it into a very cold refrigerator. Using gas and the pumping of air out of the bottle won’t work very well. Gimmicks cannot replace a very cool non freezing place for your wine.

It’s high time we grasp the obvious. Wine is Food and should be treated as such. It will spoil if not taken care of and you should demand of your wineries, retailers, and wholesalers the same. I cannot imagine paying $5.00 for spoiled produce yet many of you are paying $50.00, $100.00 and more for a spoiled bottle of wine.

Rest in peace if you choose!

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com
www.greglinnwines.com

I visit Italy often and on one of my visits I was grateful to visit a great Brunello Property, Soldaria. Mr. Solderia asked me what I did and I told him. After which he made an off handed remark, saying “Oh, Coca Cola” referring American wine! You see the Italians and the rest of the old world believe we have sugar pallets, and we make, well Coca Cola. Truth be known most of the wine sold in the U.S. is sweet.  As I’ve said before sweetness can come from fruit, alcohol, barrels, low acidity. Sometimes the sweetness is because the wine has R.S. Residual Sugar. In wines that are suppose to be sweet this is as it should be, however in wines that are suppose to be dry, then less is better.

As my own pallet has evolved, (only pallet I know for certain), I noticed through the years that higher acid, and less sweetness are what I like young. Then the natural lifting of the sweetness over time brings something exciting, but not clawing. If you add Tartaric acid to a wine it becomes gummy on the palette, thats why I like natural acid it finishes clean. If you add Sugar to a wine, like they do in Burgundy, and use beet root sugar, it leaves a heavy film on ones pallet, so wines that do not add sugar may be better and purer. Also consider that the less R.S. and alcohol, the brighter the flavors and the broader the flavors. Not to mention there are more flavors. I do not believe I have a better palette then someone else, I believe my palate has been trained longer, seen more wines and has, forgive me more wisdom. This only comes with time, and if you keep at it you will evolve and see a drastic difference in where you started and where your headed. Many may disagree, but that would be unwise and less then honest. Just remember back when you were a child and remember your first green bean, asparagus, or Broccoli and your starting to get it, change is inevitable.

Any person who’s tasted as long as I have, (and there are many) will agree, will you be one of those people. I suggest you keep going back to the bottles you thought to be to lien, they may surprise you!

Here’s to the changes in life,

Greg Linn

Greg Linn Wines
greg@greglinnwines.com

I frequently measure our wines against the world’s highest rated and rarest of bottles. Always within the same vintage, or close. We blind many more times than not and I can tell you the results are striking. I won’t mention any names but recently I opened both a Pinot and Chardonnay from the same producer that scored 98 and 96 points. This wine was made by a highly regarded wine maker and we opened these wines next to mine from the same vintage. I took the liberty of having my co-winemaker, and added to the mix three other people who are on different levels of wine knowledge. One extremely knowledgeable, one in the middle, and one starting out. Since you don’t need to guess, the tasting was not close and in fact the pinot from my competitor was barely drinkable. Barely drinkable for a 98 point wine. Something is wrong in wineville my friends. The ships running without a keel in a circle heading nowhere.

Some of this is from the writer himself who believes if the winemaker is famous the wine has to be good, some of this is from the wine directors who think the same. The wines are not varietal correct in many cases but these folks just don’t know any better. It’s a simple truth that if your told from an early age that black is white and white is black you will believe it, no other point of reference. If your told that a wine that is 13.5% on the label you believe it. But after tasting a while you can bet I’m leery of a label that says 13.5% and finishes hot. I can tell you there are wines that boast 14% and are really 16%. The reason I bring this up again is the wine is no longer Varietal correct, at least not in the case of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. And if a young Sommelier has tasted only high Alc. wines for a long time that’s what he or she thinks is correct. It’s just the way things are! I don’t like being cheated, and if I’m told something it should stand to reason it’s reasonably correct. So 98 should be good, 13.5% should be close, and Gucci should be Gucci?

Look I’m not saying our wine we blinded in this scenario should receive a 98 but I am saying the 98 point wine was terrible and it’s a scam. It is not possible for one critic to judge blind all wines every year next to one another. But I believe a panel of tasters should score all wines blind send in their scores and use the net weighted score. They should never compare notes with each other, and not ever be sent the same wine as another judge at the same time. They should be sent in non labeled bottles and judged then scored as sample numbers. The wine then receives its average score and then revealed. Also by the way it should be tested for Alcohol, V.A., Sugar, Bret., T/A and Ph. also Sulfur.

Being transparent can only help the misinformed, weed out the misleader’s, and help the misfortunate. It will put the brilliant young up and coming wine maker on an equal playing field. It will give our consumers confidence and push the whole industry into better wines on every level. Oh and we might educate the misfortunate who have been told these untruths for so long and bring them to an awakening.

Here’s to the base pads all being 90 feet away and playing the same game,

G

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com
www.greglinnwines.com

What is it that allows us to be led by someone we do not know guiding our buying choices so blindly without question. It has always been so, the movie critic, the clothing critic, the art critic, the food critic. So why should wine be any different. We have tried several reincarnations of rating wine. We have had Stars, Puffs, 10 points, 20 points, 50 points and the list goes on. The 1976 Paris tasting was 20 points that I prefer but the most successful rating system in all of wine is the Robert Parker 100 point system. Mr. Parkers rating system has been the standard now for at least the last 20 years. As most of you know he nailed the 1982 Bordeaux Vintage and there was no turning back from there. He has become the most read, and influential Critic of all time in any form.
He is read not only here in the United States but all throughout Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, all of Asia, India, South America, Canada, Russia, China well just about everywhere. To deny his power and influence would be a fool’s folly.

This Blog is not about Robert Parker Jr. However, this lawyer from a small town in Maryland illustrates a bigger point. You can lead by example and he certainly does! Many have taken unfair shots at him, that’s what happens when you become a success. My father once told me that the higher up the flag pole you fly, the more your ass becomes a target! There will always be those that are envious of his success but even his biggest detractors cannot deny his overall contribution to the wine world One man has single handedly gotten so many people to pick up a glass of wine and has helped numerous people to understand the greatness of this beverage. I for one would like to thank him! He is a kind decent and honest man. He takes no advertising dollars and he plays no favorites. His 100 point system is used by Steve Tanzer, Allen Meadows and many others. So why do I spend so much time on a blog that’s not suppose to be about him, this is why,

READ THE TEXT!

Mr. Parker, Mr. Meadows and Mr. Tanzer like so many other critics have encouraged you from the start to stop being mindless and start making your own choices. I wrote a blog long ago about your own pallet, about how only you can tell what you like. That it’s alright to disagree with the self proclaimed expert in the room who pretends to know more than everyone else. He may know more Regions, Producers, History but he can’t tell you what to like, unless you allow him or her too! If the wine has a strong influence of say mushroom or bacon fat and you don’t like mushrooms and bacon fat then even if it scores 100 points it’s all right not to like it. See the point, the text will guide you as to what the critic is tasting! Now you may not taste the same things but I would guess if he is animated about a certain flavor then it’s likely there. You could have bought one bottle instead of several and if you taste the same thing and if you don’t like such things then you don’t have to buy that wine again. Also if that critic is found to be similar in his recognition of flavors you are not in favor of then you can avoid ever buying another bottle that might be offensive. That is if you read the Text! Sometimes the Critic if honest will say something like, I prefer wines of lower acid but no doubt those that prefer these style wines will no doubt score this wine much higher. This is why the critic almost unanimously asks you to Please read, to a point of begging.

I do believe the 100 point system that was suppose to allow a little more flexibility then the old 20 point system has gotten a little top heavy. I mean it was suppose to stop the 17.5 scores! That was the intent, but many wines have gotten slammed together and it’s a little crowded near the top. But that brings me back to the key phrase of the article, if you want to unwind two 90 point wines, READ THE TEXT!

May be I’ll start the 1000 point system, NAW!

Next time you clean your wine glass, clean your reading glass also,

Greg Linn
www.greglinnwines.com

To understand all of this let’s deal locally since that’s where I write from live and make my living. There was at one time this mad rush to plant grapes in our central coast with very little forethought to what where or how? Yes, Pinot planted in land where in was 100 degrees most of the time. Cabernet close to the coast and every other varietal you can imagine. People planted to the wine grape they liked not what would work best! Then there was vineyard spacing, vineyard facing, root stock selection and clones. Ground prep, farming practices and the list goes on. If you plant in deep soils, fertile soils with vigorous root stocks then you get Big Tonnage, but do you get great wine? The practices of ground cover, native or un-native plants and grasses between the rows to compete for nutrition helps. However a vine is like an engine and if given the proper fuel will produce even with the competition.

In my opinion we have gotten way to far into the science of lest resistance. We have planted so called disease resistant Root Stock’s and have taken away any measure of pureness. I understand the great capital out lay of putting in a Vineyard, so on many levels I understand the desire to protect against such things. It is a matter of fact however that all insects, and diseases mutate and no one is absolutely safe. I believe that going back to planting on own root is the answer ultimately. The Central Coast has vines that exceed 40 years of age that were planted in this manner. They are producing just fine and have little in the way of problems. Many so called Resistant Root Stocks have failed in the mean time. If given half a chance the vine becomes strong building up it’s immune system just as yours and mine. They become more resistant by becoming stronger.

The benefits are more then just healthy vines, they are better wines. Because an own root clone 667 is a pure 667 plant. The root stock has a direct effect on the flavor’s of the cluster and in turn the wine. Is it risky, well maybe but we have been told time and again of the virtues of root stocks just to replant prematurely. I say the proof is already in the ground and so yes I think worth the risk. The end results could be startling! You need the best ingredients to make a wine, the wine is made in the vineyard that simple. So if I were to choose I say give me the purity of an uninhibited plant, grown in an organic or bio dynamic way. This I believe produces the best of what we can achieve. In the end you will certainly know wether you like the 667, 777, 115 clone because you will be tasting it as it should be. And if you take the care you will plant it in a cool climate, with shallow soil’s protected against frost, and an overabundance of wind. You will plant densely and face the proper way. You will water, however you will not add chemicals unless you have no choice. You will farm so the grapes are at a lower position to the ground, you will manage your canopy and you will reduce crop by thinning appropriately. Who knows maybe you will be successful and return us to where we started, with out the science and let nature take it’s course. In all due respect to U.C. Davis it seemed to work for centuries with out interference and trying to tweak what Mother Nature had perfected.

Not much chance of many changing there course but hey opinions aside it’s nice to dream,

Greg Linn
greg@greglinnwines.com

My Grandfather Colargio Zito and my Grandmother Giovana came to the new World in the early part of the Twentieth Century, 1902 and 1904 to be exact. I am talking of a 32-year-old man who left everything he knew, loved and understood for a better life. His first wife, who died very early in Sicily, gave him a child named Mary, my Aunt Mary to be exact. They struggled to find a place for themselves like so many other immigrants of the time being called Wop, Guinea, Gangster. The height of intolerance was upon the land and anyone who was not Anglo Saxon need not apply. This was as true for the Irish, Germans, Polish, Jews, African, Spanish and any others that were different. It is little wonder that they all huddled together, in the same neighborhoods. Italians on one block, Jews on the next, Irish and so on. Within those refugees there was a semblance of order and understanding, familiarity. One could speak his or her native tongue and not be ridiculed.

Soon after my Grandfather’s arrival, a courtship pursued between him and my Grandmother. They were set up, so to speak, by the ladies of the day and soon after they wed. They had six more children, one boy and five girls, the youngest of which was my Mother, Giovana. But that name was soon stripped away at school. You see, the teachers of the day did not look so kindly on Italian names and so they insisted they be changed to their English equivalent. That’s when my Mother became Jeanette. Of course, all of her sisters were given different names such as Jenny, Katie, Lily, Connie and Mary. My uncle who also died young, Johnny, died of Pneumonia. Now there are only two sisters left, we lost Jenny two weeks ago at the age of 100. Lilly is 96 and my mom is 82. Yes, as the great Dylan song goes, “The times they are a changing” for sure.  

I need to thank my Grandfather who, by the way, I never met. No, he was gone as well as my Grandmother before I came along. Not to worry, my Grandmother had two sisters and they filled in that role nicely. They took all the children under their wings and provided the nurturing that would have come from their real Mother and gave me my only true Grandmother experience. Got to love the old ways, picking up the pieces was without question as natural an act as there could be. My Grandfather leaving what he knew, braved the sea, the brunt of jokes and humiliation, to give me the opportunity I would never have known. Hell, I would not even be here if not for this brave man. On our Zito Family label, the humblest of our wines. Made to drink now, affordable, and a reminder of so many of the wines made in the cellars of Italians like my Grandfather. You will see a park bench with two glasses, wine poured in both. The one wish if could be granted to spend a afternoon on that bench with him and speak of things I don’t understand. To thank him and ask why he did what he did. To show him what he had created, the vast family that now is rooted so deeply in America numbering in the hundreds. Yes the glasses are full and they await the moment when we are finally together. I will sit with him and ask these things and we will drink till we’ve had enough, or I’m all talked out.

To you my fearless man, all 5 foot 4 inches of pure love and tenacity. To you and my Grandmother, who I will also sit with when the time comes. To my Great Aunts who treated me better than I ever deserved, to my Aunts who were always there for us and loved us nearly as much as their own children. To a time past that’s worth striving for again. To family, the kind of which cannot be measured in anything other than love. I salute you all and will strive to be better, closer to the principles you bestowed on all of us.

That’s it, getting blurry, must be something in my eye.

I’ll be up soon Grandpa

Greg

I travelled to Asia for business and to sell our wine. It is true; China is an up and coming super power that wants for everything Western. However, it is also equally important to know they are a fledgling in wine knowledge but are catching on very quickly. The opposite is true when talking of Korea (that would be South Korea for those Googling). The Korean people have moved through the Cabernet Only Crown to Pinot, and are Burgundy lovers also. They enjoy a wide range of wines and are very knowledgeable and open. Their people are as pleasant, as any I’ve come to know, and although reserved in their approach to life, they enjoy themselves when the opportunity is appropriate. I have never had a distributor that was more professional, from the sales people, public relation people and my partner, Ms. Kim our interpreter. My dear friend Dr. Kim made me aware of this great market and its people and I will forever be grateful for his influence at our inception and his introduction into this new land and market. To say I was treated with celebrity status would be an understatement; it is more accurate to say I was treated with GREAT respect. A key word in this culture that hold’s more meaning than most others.

I would like you to imagine, if you can, just for a moment, what it’s like to be within artillery range from the North. In fact, there are so many long-range guns trained on Seoul from the North, the estimates are the city would be rubble before they could be taken out. This is because they are hidden in the mountains within caverns and near impossible to get to. When asked about such things, the people say they are aware but choose to conduct their lives without fear. The people of Korea are resilient and determined. They will not allow themselves to be governed by fear. They are a free society of amazing people. Korean life is full of culture, innovation and peace, with old world values that serve them well. A must visit for those so inclined. ??

Happy New Year to all, and look for some big announcements next year. We are just getting warmed up!

Greg Linn
www.greglinnwines.com
www.unfilteredwinereport.com

2008 Greg Linn Wines Sauvignon Blanc White Hills Vineyard – 92 Points RP
The 2008 Sauvignon Blanc White Hills Vineyard is a classic Sauvignon with more stoniness and minerality than most California examples. Crisp honeydew melon, lemon grass, and fig notes emerge from this medium-bodied, impressively concentrated white. It should continue to drink well for another 2-3 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Chardonnay Grangerville Vineyard – 94+ Points RP
Also 100% barrel-fermented, the 2007 Chardonnay Grangerville Vineyard reveals a light medium gold color along with aromas of nectarines, white peaches, crushed rocks, creme brulee, and honeyed lemon. Fresh, full-bodied, rich, and structured, with little oak in evidence, I would not be surprised to see this Chardonnay age for a decade or more.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Pinot Noir Hudson Vineyard – 90+ Points RP
The 2007 Pinot Noir Hudson Vineyard (from a site further north in Carneros, is 100% destemmed. This wine has undeniable elegance, crisp sweet and sour cherry, red currant, pomegranate, and spring flower notes, medium body, and silky tannins. Drink it over the next 5-6 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Pinot Noir le Bon Climat Vineyard – 93+ Points RP
The stunning 2007 Pinot Noir Le Bon Climat Vineyard was fermented with 100% whole clusters. Its dark plum/ruby color is accompanied by a sweet bouquet of damp earth, forest floor, fresh porcini mushrooms, black currants, sweet cherries, and spice. Deep, full-bodied, rich, and long, this wine is still tightly coiled, but it should unfold over the next 10+ years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Pinot Noir Rimrock Vineyard – 95+ Points RP
Only 1,080 bottles were produced of the 2007 Pinot Noir Rimrock Vineyard (100% whole cluster fermentation was utilized). It exhibits copious aromas of tobacco leaf, red cherries, fresh mushrooms, and black currants. The earthy character, full-bodied mouthfeel, stunning concentration, and fresh acids result in a wine that requires several more years of bottle age. It should age effortlessly for 10-15 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Pinot Noir Grangerville Vineyard – 90+ Points RP
Greg Linn’s love affair with acidity appears to have gone over the top with the 2007 Pinot Noir Grangerville Vineyard from the Santa Maria hills. Fashioned from 100% whole clusters, it displays a dense ruby/purple color. The proprietor believes this may be the greatest wine he has ever produced, and perhaps it will prove to be that in ten years’ time. At present, the acids are higher than most. It is a pure wine with plenty of interesting aromas, but it is virtually impossible to penetrate. I think it should turn out to be outstanding. Those who like pure native acids in their Pinot Noirs will undoubtedly rate is higher than I did.

2006 Greg Line Ambullneo Vineyards Rim Rock Vineyard Syrah – 94 Points RP
The prodigious 2006 Syrah Rim Rock is pedal-to-the-medal Syrah with great balance in addition to great power and precision. From limestone soils, this wine offers up notes of black raspberry, black currant, blackberry, licorice, and graphite. The wine is dense, full-bodied, yet combines power with a sense of elegance and equilibrium. Very layered in the mouth, with silky, sweet tannins, but a sense of structure and delineation, this is a beauty that can be approached now or cellared for 10 or more years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Ambullneo Vineyards Chardonnay Big Paw – 93 Points RP
The 2007 Chardonnay Big Paw from Ambullneo Vineyards is Linn’s attempt to produce a full-bodied, Chablis-styled Chardonnay with no oak aging. Aged 16 months in stainless steel tanks, with full malolactic fermentation (indigenous as well), this beauty offers up aromas of lemon and lime zest intermixed with honeyed nectarines, orange rind, white currant, quince, and crushed rocks. This light straw-colored Chardonnay has a greenish hue (which I consider to be a good sign), excellent acidity, and a full-bodied, intense style. It should drink nicely for 3-4 years, possibly longer.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Ambullneo Vineyards Chardonnay Fang Blanc – 94 Points RP
Although the 2007 Ambullneo Vineyards Chardonnay Fang Blanc (100% barrel-fermented) is tightly coiled at present, there is no doubting its terrific potential. Tart acids underlie this light straw-colored wine that offers up notes of honeyed pears, tropical fruits, nectarines, and white peaches. Full-bodied, fresh, and crunchy, it is a total delight to smell and taste. Enjoy it over the next 5-7 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Ambullneo Vineyards Pinot Noir Bulldog – 93 Points RP
Ambullneo Vineyards’ 2007 Pinot Noir Bulldog (named after his affection for both the English and American Bulldog breeds) is a serious winner meant for connoisseurs. Made from at least seven different Pinot Noir clones, and including 75% whole stems in the vinification, it boasts a dense ruby/purple color as well as a tight but promising nose of white chocolate, black cherries, raspberries, and forest floor. Full-bodied with bracing acidity, moderate alcohol (13.4%), and an exceptionally long finish, this cuvee will benefit from another 1-2 years in the bottle, and should last for a decade thereafter.

2006 Ambullneo Vineyards Syrah Howling – 92 Points RP
There is nothing oafish about the 2006 Howling Syrah, a wine that screams blackberry and exotic flowers, with a full-bodied, fleshy, multi-layered personality. Fat and densely purple, it displays a big, sweet kiss of blackberry and cassis with that hint of 2% Viognier present in the background. The luscious texture and seductive style make for a Syrah to drink over the next 7-8 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Zito Chardonnay – 90 Points RP
The 2007 Zito Chardonnay reveals plenty of fresh, poached pear, crisp lemon zest, and nectarine characteristics in a medium to full-bodied, fresh, lively style with no evidence of wood. It should drink well for 2-4 years.

2007 Greg Linn Wines Zito Pinot Noir – 89+ Points RP
The least expensive Pinot Noir is the 2007 Zito Pinot Noir. Its dark ruby/plum color is followed by a sweet kiss of cranberries, pomegranates, and ripe currants presented in a seductive, lush (by Greg Linn’s standards) style with decent acidity and a plush, richly fruity mouthfeel. It should drink nicely for 4-6 years.

Yes united, all states to form a perfect union, great words but lost when it comes to your rights as individuals. You see, we are supposed to have state’s rights so that you may have choices to live as you like within the confines of federal standards. To be more to the point, you can’t infringe on others rights by claiming your own. You can’t murder, rape, steal etc., you get the point. But if you want to live in a place where there are no state income taxes then you have that right. There should also be free inter commerce between states with fair pricing of products from state to state. If you buy a washer, car, or a computer they should be accessible and competitive from state to state, right? So why is it we, in the wine industry, have to kneel down to every state and abide by the antiquated three tier system that has been the single cause of wine prices to sky rocket and has caused the absence of some of your country’s finest wines from your local merchant.

The answer is forthcoming, but it’s true that we’re only in 12 states total. It’s also true that many states would find it a felony to ship a bottle of wine to you directly. Imagine ordering a pair of shoes from somewhere then as you put them on you become a criminal?

Where is the justice for the wine industry? Of course these laws were put in place right after prohibition times, then the distributors throughout the years with power and lobbyist have made the laws even stronger. So it works like this, we have to be licensed in all states if selling wine there. We have to use a distributor in any state outside of California if we want the right to sell there. And now even California is being pushed by the distributors to change existing law so we would have to sell to distributors in state also. They use the explanation that children are getting their hands on alcohol and it must be subject to safe guards so we don’t allow minors to have access to this forbidden drug. Bull crap. It’s money, plain and simple. Distributors don’t like us selling direct because it cuts into their profits. They want a monopoly on all wineries, in other words, we would become slaves to people we don’t even know. Being obedient to them or we will sell nothing! You consumers from outside the state are already affected. And if we lose our right to sell directly then your pricing will have to go up. This is simple economics. Many of the states are being pressured to stop direct sales form distributors and for the record their argument is porous, full of holes. We can’t ship without warning labels, and adult signatures. No minors are signing for our packages. If a minor does drink a bottle of wine it’s because he got someone to go into a wine store and buy it, or he took it from his parent’s cellar. For the record, distributors have it wrong! If wineries were allowed to freely ship directly, there’s a much better chance that someone you introduced the wine to will order it at a local restaurant. And the restaurant orders that wine from distributors only. So we, on one hand, help them promote the wine.  It’s short sided thinking caused by greed.

If the distributors have full control over wineries, they won’t have to buy wine until it’s sold. They can reduce inventory and just place orders as needed knowing they have us under their thumb. Can you imagine any other business running the same way? Creative people making something from scratch then having a distributor plunder your profits from you. Such things used to be punishable by imprisonment. Now it’s acceptable because you open the purse strings to access to your local representative and they want the power so badly not stopping to think who they’re hurting by making some knee jerk decision that becomes law. If you want to live in an alcohol free county there are many to choose from, believe me. And for the record there are many kind, and honest people working for these distributors that agree but can’t speak up without fear of reprisal.

I am here to tell you the price of a bottle of Bordeaux has tripled in the last five years. Some prices are even higher! The same goes for Burgundy and other imports. The fact is the Chateau’s and Domaines don’t reap all the rewards, it’s the importers, then the distributor, then the wine store, then it gets to you with three and four 30% mark ups along the way. The growing markets of the world are seeing more of the allocation you once had to choose from. Your choices are getting slimmer and we also are starting to export because that may be our future, sad to say.

I encourage all who lift a glass of wine from time to time to write your local representative. Tell them you’re unhappy with the current three tier system and sometimes four tier system. Tell him or her, you want choice and the distributors are in the way of the most fundamental rights bestowed on you by our constitution. Tell them it has become easier to buy a Bag of Marijuana than to get your favorite bottle of wine. If things progress the way they are, we will soon become extinct. Not chosen for extinction from fair competition but stripped of it by thieves that disguise themselves. They say they want what’s right, but they think you’re stupid and can’t see through their plan. Money buys power and with it corrupts a system that was designed to be fair.

I hope a cord was struck. If not, I feel we will slide down a slippery slope never to find our footing again.

Thanks for your ear,

Greg Linn
www.unfilteredwinereport.com
www.greglinnwines.com