Photograph by George Sakkestad
Corentino Molina cuts a branch from the vine during Cinnabar Vineyards' grape harvest.
By Torre Peña
The clink of wine glasses and the glint of purple in the slanting sun herald the fourth annual October grape stomp at Cinnabar Vineyards and Winery. Enjoying spectacular views of the valley below, more than 400 people flock to the mountain-top winery above Congress Springs Road to celebrate the completion of another fall harvest.
Whether kicking off their shoes to feel the sensation of grapes oozing between their toes or sipping chardonnay while listening to owner Tom Mudd explain the intricacies of his wine, the guests leave with a distinct impression of the mountain winery. The surrounding vineyards, in the process of changing from vibrant greens to autumnal yellows and browns, are gaining a national reputation for producing premium wines.
In 1989, Cinnabar began attracting wine connoisseurs with a rare feat in the wine business. Its first vintage ever, 250 cases of the 1986 Cabernet Sauvignon, hit pay dirt.
"It put us on the map immediately. It got a very high score in one of the two best rags in the industry, the Wine Advocate," says owner and winemaker Tom Mudd. "After the review came out, I suddenly had 12 distributors for the next vintage."
Mudd retired as a research engineer from Stanford Research Institute (SRI International) in 1982 to apply his passion for science to making wine. "Winemaking is a nice mixture of science and art," he says.
Fashioning himself as a modern-day alchemist, he relishes his role in "the miraculous transformation of turning rainwater into wine."
Mudd explains that the purplish-red mercury, called cinnabar, is the mineral from which quicksilver is derived. Alchemists, the pseudo-scientists of the 13th century, valued cinnabar in their efforts to transform base metals into silver or gold.
Alluding to this miraculous transformation, Mudd named his winery after the mineral, opting not to use his own descriptive surname. Since then, accolades have been heaped on Cinnabar for the successful transformation of grapes into gold medal winners with honors bestowed by the Wine Enthusiast, the Beverage Tasting Institute and the Tasters Guild international.
Perched 1,650 feet above the valley, Cinnabar is part of the Santa Cruz Mountain Chaine d'Or, or golden chain, shared with another high-end mountain winery, Mt. Eden Vineyards.
Cinnabar's upper vineyard almost always basks in full sunlight because the mountain's elevation is above the fog inversion layer. "It looks like you can walk right out on it," Mudd says, describing the illusion created by a blanket of fog enveloping the grapevines.
"It was a grower's dream this year," says Ron Mosley, Cinnabar's viticulturist and general manager since day one. "This is a great growing region because of the climate, and mountain soils are thinner, not as vigorous, and that helps the vines to slow down. It keeps them lean."
Using Mt. Eden as a guide, Mudd chose the 40-acre site in 1983 to plant his vineyards, taking advantage of Saratoga's unique climate. "I figured that, if I could end up in a spot that had similar climate to Mt. Eden and similar elevation, I could make wines damn near as good as Mt. Eden's," says Mudd, who spent a year plotting weather maps and searching for the perfect location.
Founded in 1942 by Martin Ray, Mt. Eden is renowned as the original "boutique" California wine property. And the winery is recognized as the beginning of the fine-wine movement in post-prohibition California.
"Martin Ray was known as a pioneer for estate wines," says Jeffrey Patterson, Mt. Eden's proprietor and winemaker. "We have the oldest estate pinot noir in the country."
With estate wines, only grapes grown on site are used and the entire winemaking process occurs at the winery, allowing the winemaker to craft every aspect by hand. Producing just 4,000 cases of estate wine last year, Cinnabar's state-of-the-art winery focuses on producing high-quality wines that reflect their earthy Santa Cruz Mountains origins.
"It's all dry farmed, so we don't irrigate it at all," Mosley adds. "We rely on winter rainfalls of 50 to 90 inches; we are not developing weight by adding water."
Mosley says the result is an undiluted grape full of flavor.
While some of the larger wineries in the Napa Valley, which produce as much as 100,000 cases a year or more, may introduce oak chips into their wine, Mudd ages his wine in oak barrels procured from the Vosges forest in France. Stacked in rows, his wines are stored in temperature-controlled caves he designed under the winery.
However, the most distinguishing character of Cinnabar's wine may come from the grapes themselves. Taken as cuttings from Mt. Eden, these varietals are part of viticulture history.
"The clones we have planted are very unusual in California," Mudd says of his chardonnay. "Because it's a small producer, nobody else grows it."
Originating from France's Burgundy region, cuttings of the original vines were planted in the Santa Clara Valley in 1880 and later used by Paul Masson for his winery above Saratoga. Martin Ray, former owner of Paul Masson Vineyards, took cuttings to Mt. Eden in 1942.
Wine from these varietals enticed John Steinbeck, a regular visitor while writing the Grapes of Wrath, to the Paul Masson winery when Martin Ray owned it. Upon completion of the novel, Steinbeck gave a copy to the Rays with the inscription, "My vintage for yours."
Cinnabar's cabernet grapes can be traced through Mt. Eden back to a famous Bordeaux estate, Chateau Margaux, in France. They were brought to the valley in about 1890 by Emmet Ricksford, an eccentric doctor who taught medicine at Stanford University.
"Low yields give intensity and specialness," explains Patterson, who is interested in making handcrafted wines. Using varietals that are small producers, both Mt. Eden and Cinnabar sacrifice quantity for quality.
Next year's grape stomp will usher in the first substantial harvest of recently planted pinot noir.
Although Cinnabar continues to expand, appointments to visit the winery are needed.
"We're too little. We don't have enough staff to take care of a tasting room," Mudd says. "Our use permit doesn't allow off-the-road traffic." A single-lane dirt road leads to his mountain.
Where visitors can sample the fine wines of Saratoga
The Santa Cruz Mountain appellation is a grape grower's dream, and the individual microclimates, mountain terrain, distinctive soils and marine influence all contribute to the success of five Saratoga wineries. Recognized worldwide for crafting premium wines, their relative proximity to the village and one another presents an opportunity for a convenient winetasting adventure.
* Cinnabar Vineyards and Winery, 2300 Congress Springs Road, 741-5858.
Perched above the village of Saratoga, the cabernet grapes growing on the rugged mountain are hand-picked at Cinnabar, and the whole berries are fermented to produce their estate wine. The winery offers estate chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon; tours are available by appointment only.
* Cooper-Garrod Estate Vineyards, 22600 Mt. Eden Road, 741-8094.
A family-owned winery specializing in the chardonnay, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon varietals, Cooper-Garrod limits annual production to 3,000 cases to devote attention to producing fine estate wines. The 21-acre estate vineyard is located at Garrod Farms. The historic tasting room is open weekends 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
* Mt. Eden Vineyards, 22020 Mt. Eden Road, 867-5832.
Focusing on small plots of pinot noir, chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon, Mt. Eden is recognized as a catalyst of the fine-wine movement in post-prohibition California. Tours of the winery, which includes an exhibition of poetry and photography, must be scheduled by appointment at least one week in advance.
* Kathryn Kennedy Winery, 13280 Pierce Road, 867-4170.
The Kathryn Kennedy Winery was recently awarded a double gold medal in the Santa Cruz Mountains Wine Competition for its 1992 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. Winemaker Mary Mathis harvests grapes from the original eight acres. By appointment only.
* Savannah Chanel Vineyards, 23600 Congress Springs Road, 741-2930.
Offering magnificent views of the valley, Savannah Chanel is the only winery in Saratoga offering tasting daily, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, November 13, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved