So why isn't anyone talking about Scherrer?

J

Jay Miller

Jay Miller
Mr. Grossman, several friends and I visited the winery this past week and while the wines spoke very eloquently for themselves they were matched the discussion of the winery's history, philosophy, techniques, etc. from Fred Scherrer.

Very undoctrinaire approach though he tries to minimize "work" done on the wine itself. For example he starts everything with indigineous yeast fermentation and will only apply cultured yeast if he feels the wine requires it. Jeff will probably remember other details better than I do.

We tasted the

2010 Helfer Chardonnay - good solid chardonnay. I'd probably compare it most closely to a good Macon (not one made in the richer Thevenet style). If it weren't $42 I'd be a buyer but for now I'll still look to Brun for this category of wine.

2007 OMV Zinfandel - I've posted on this before, perhaps the most elegant zin I've ever had. I already had some more on order but it's highly recommended. Chris - we're still waiting for your notes. $30

2009 OMV Zinfandel - similar but younger, bramblier and perhaps a touch grapier but that's to be expected. Hold. $30

2008 Sonoma County Pinot Noir - lovely, lovely stuff, soft and silky. I look forward to opening some for the locals once it arrives. $35

2008 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir - this tasted more like a balanced standard Russian River Pinot. Very good for someone who likes that style but less interesting for me than either the previous or the next bottle. $42

2008 Platt Pinot Noir - gorgeous, complex, spicy wine. A bit Vosne-ish. $75

2007 Sonoma Cost Big Brother Pinot Noir - I don't have any notes. I remember liking it just a bit less than the Sonoma County or Platt but it's faded in my memory. $50

2007 Russian River Valley 'Sasha' Syrah - okay, who slipped some Cornas into this tasting? Lavender and dried herbs. Complex and lovely. NYers will get to taste this too. $30

2008 Calypso Syrah - darker and more underbrushy. Very, very good. Probably more ageworthy than the Sasha but not the charmer that the latter is currently. I almost bought some but thoughts of my storage unit were sufficient to hold me back. But if not for that... $30

2004 Alexander Valley Cabernet Scherrer Vineyard - beautiful wine with very pure fruit. More reminiscent of CRB Cabernet than anything young I've had from CA any time in the last decade. $60

2005 Alexander Valley Cabernet Scherrer Vineyard
2002 Alexander Valley Cabernet Scherrer Vineyard

A remarkably enjoyable visit and some remarkable wines. But I thought Steve was the only guy making great inexpensive Syrah in California. When I find out who left me out of the loop I'll give them a good talking to.
 
originally posted by Jay Miller:
So why isn't anyone talking about Scherrer?Mr. Grossman, several friends and I visited the winery this past week and while the wines spoke very eloquently for themselves they were matched the discussion of the winery's history, philosophy, techniques, etc. from Fred Scherrer.
Click to expand...

Jay,
Over the years I've enjoyed Fred's wines quite a bit, though they're impossible to find out here in flyover country. The drive to his digs from the Mendo coast (the usual way we get there) is also quite an experience, though not for the faint of inner ear. Glad to hear that he's doing such good work these days (never had his Syrah or Cabernet, so can't comment). We'll have to make another trip out there when we can.

Mark Lipton
 
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Jay Miller:
So why isn't anyone talking about Scherrer?Mr. Grossman, several friends and I visited the winery this past week and while the wines spoke very eloquently for themselves they were matched the discussion of the winery's history, philosophy, techniques, etc. from Fred Scherrer.
Click to expand...

Jay,
Over the years I've enjoyed Fred's wines quite a bit, though they're impossible to find out here in flyover country. The drive to his digs from the Mendo coast (the usual way we get there) is also quite an experience, though not for the faint of inner ear. Glad to hear that he's doing such good work these days (never had his Syrah or Cabernet, so can't comment). We'll have to make another trip out there when we can.

Mark Lipton
Click to expand...

The Cabernet was very good but not IMO as interesting as the Zins, Pinots and Syrahs.

Of course 9 times out of 10 I'll find Cabernet and Chardonnay less interesting so I don't know how much is internal prejudice.

But I picked up one bottle of the Cabernet.

If they weren't arriving after my September blind tasting a whole bunch would have made their way into that dinner.
 
I used to drink the zin back in the day, but it's been a long time. Glad to hear things are going well.

Does anyone see these in NYC? I can't recall.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
I used to drink the zin back in the day, but it's been a long time. Glad to hear things are going well.

Does anyone see these in NYC? I can't recall.
Click to expand...

Not much. My local overpriced wine store carries the OMV at a 30% markup over CA retail (though they offer a 20% case discount - the USW model) but I don't see a single NYC store carrying them on Winesearcher-Amateur.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
I used to drink the zin back in the day, but it's been a long time. Glad to hear things are going well.

Does anyone see these in NYC? I can't recall.
Click to expand...

Ditto. They used to be available here as well.

I'm an SFJoe ditto head!
 
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Jay Miller:
So why isn't anyone talking about Scherrer?Mr. Grossman, several friends and I visited the winery this past week and while the wines spoke very eloquently for themselves they were matched the discussion of the winery's history, philosophy, techniques, etc. from Fred Scherrer.
Click to expand...

Jay,
Over the years I've enjoyed Fred's wines quite a bit, though they're impossible to find out here in flyover country. The drive to his digs from the Mendo coast (the usual way we get there) is also quite an experience, though not for the faint of inner ear. Glad to hear that he's doing such good work these days (never had his Syrah or Cabernet, so can't comment). We'll have to make another trip out there when we can.

Mark Lipton
Click to expand...

Mark,

Lots of stock up here in the big city - Flickinger seem to have gone long. Fred was out here in April and I caught him pouring at one of the locals. I too was quite taken by the '07 zin and the AV cab, but the highlight was really just listening to him talk.
 
originally posted by fillay:
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Jay Miller:
So why isn't anyone talking about Scherrer?Mr. Grossman, several friends and I visited the winery this past week and while the wines spoke very eloquently for themselves they were matched the discussion of the winery's history, philosophy, techniques, etc. from Fred Scherrer.
Click to expand...

Jay,
Over the years I've enjoyed Fred's wines quite a bit, though they're impossible to find out here in flyover country. The drive to his digs from the Mendo coast (the usual way we get there) is also quite an experience, though not for the faint of inner ear. Glad to hear that he's doing such good work these days (never had his Syrah or Cabernet, so can't comment). We'll have to make another trip out there when we can.

Mark Lipton
Click to expand...

Mark,

Lots of stock up here in the big city - Flickinger seem to have gone long. Fred was out here in April and I caught him pouring at one of the locals. I too was quite taken by the '07 zin and the AV cab, but the highlight was really just listening to him talk.
Click to expand...

Whoever does the buying for Flickinger knows his or her stuff. For a long time it was my go to source for Musar and Allemand.
 
Let's see what else I can remember:

Fred crushes the white grapes all in one go, but does several squeezings for the reds. Some years ago he noticed that it was often, but not always, the case that adding the later press-wine helped the final product. He has a scientific mind and wanted to know why (and, of course, to optimize it). So, a crush that should take a couple hours now takes all day: He turns up the pressure in the press just a little, lets the unit drain for an hour, then makes a (one-glass, centrifuged) blend of the main vat plus this batch to see if he likes it better than the main vat alone. If yes, the batch goes in; if no, the batch is kept aside for "some other use". He then turns the pressure up and waits another hour....

He prefers manual punch-downs to pump overs, and he is quite happy with the steel tanks that have adjustable height so he can minimize the oxygen available inside.

We had a good deal of non-wine talk, too, including a lot of discussion about power ratings of the various machines (e.g. the presses, the bottling line, the labeler) and having to rewind the motors to adapt to US current (and his preferences).

He told the story of an annoyance with release strategies: He was touring in Baltimore in 2005(?) when someone loudly observed that they did not need to buy his 2003s now because the 2004s will be out soon and the 2003s will then be available at a discount. Fred put his head together with his marketing partner and they decided to always have four vintages available and that the older wines would be a few dollars more than the younger ones. This gibes with his feelings about aging wine, anyway, and the marketplace has accepted it.

He told a few stories from his Dehlinger days, he told the story of the building he occupies, he told stories of the properties he owns and the ones he buys from.

We were there for 2.5 hours so lots was said. And tasted. (I agree with Jay's notes, above.)

A really special visit. I'd imagine he and Steve could start a Sly Curmudgeons of California club, or something like that.
 
originally posted by MarkS:
'Power ratings'?? This surely goes above and beyond wine geekdom.
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We had an engineer in our group who found that part of things fascinating.

An engineer, a chemist, a computer consultant, a database administrator and a cryptographer walk into a winery...
 
originally posted by MarkS:
'Power ratings'?? This surely goes above and beyond wine geekdom.
Click to expand...
One press is Swiss, the other is German. The bottling line is Italian.

I think it was one of the presses of which he said that it came with two speeds: too fast and too slow.

And let's not get started on the cracks in the concrete floor nor about exactly which way it is sloped (hint: the drain is the high point).
 
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