Point Reyes Light - October 14, 1999

West Marin winemaking starts to come of age

A crisp, sparkling blanc de blancs made from chardonnay grapes grown along the fertile shores of Tomales Bay? Or perhaps an elegant, cherry scented pinot noir from the rolling hillsides of Nicasio? Or a smooth and velvety Chileno Valley merlot?

Such are not the typical recommendations of sommeliers and wine merchants in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, or New York. But if the Marin County Grape Growers Association has its way, the ever-increasing number of wine lovers in California and the rest of the country will soon appreciate what might formerly have seemed unlikely - pleasant, even delicious wines produced in the coolish climes of West Marin.

"We're still proving it can be done," said Point Reyes Station rancher and winemaker Steve Doughty at last week's meeting of the recently formed Marin growers association. "Napa and Sonoma look down on Marin. So what we need to do is establish legitimacy. We have an excellent product and will continue to improve on it."

Doughty and wife Sharon, both dairy ranchers, tend five acres of chardonnay and pinot noir vines on converted pasture just north of Point Reyes Station. Doughty, who was raised in Napa, planted a two-acre experimental vineyard in 1990, and its early success inspired additional plantings in later years.

In addition to the acreage here, he operates a seven-acre cabernet sauvignon vineyard in Terra Linda, and bottles his own merlot and chardonnay from grapes he acquires from Sonoma's Alexander Valley.

The association - which last week gathered at the Doughtys for their last meeting - was formed by David and Kathy Corda of Chileno Valley, and currently represents growers from nine separate properties in Marin.

The goals of the group, which first convened in June, are to market themselves and their county as a reliable source of quality wine and wine grapes, and to promote the diversification of Marin's traditional livestock-based agriculture. Members also exchange knowledge with each other about the nuances of growing wine grapes in the county's many micro-climates.

Along with his older brother Hank, David Corda owns and operates a 50-acre vineyard comprising merlot, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, pinot noir, and chardonnay plantings. Former ranchers, the Cordas got out of the industry through a federal herd buy-out program in 1986. Since then, they have become the largest wine-grape producers in Marin.

The family contracts roughly 90-percent of their crop to out-of-county wineries (including the well-respected Schug Winery in southern Sonoma), and sells the balance as varietal offerings of pinot noir and chardonnay under their own Corda label.

Mark Pasternak of Nicasio has been selected to the board of directors of the North Coast Grape Growers Association - a larger and more powerful lobbying group than Marin's. He's been producing wine grapes in Nicasio since 1980, and was the first person to plant a vineyard in West Marin since the Prohibition era of the 1920s.

Pasternak has developed 18 acres of pinot noir and chardonnay grapes, and also manages the vineyards of two other county growers, including 10 acres of vines along the Marshall-Petaluma Road owned by Tom and Mary Stubbs.

"The quantity in Marin is in limited supply," Pasternak said. "But I don't think there is a question about the quality. We could sell every berry we produce, especially pinot [noir] and chardonnay."

Pasternak sells the majority of his pinot noir grapes to the Hartford Court winery, a subsidiary of the Kendall-Jackson conglomerate from Lake County. Some of his chardonnay grapes go to Schramsberg, a premier Napa Valley sparkling wine producer.

The mild coastal climate of West Marin appears at first glance to be an ideal location for plantings of cool-weather grape varieties such as pinot noir and chardonnay, while the warmer inland valleys are more amenable to the production of merlot and cabernet sauvignon, which first found recognition in the Bordeaux region of southern France.

But the growers have found that the challenges of this region go beyond the predictable bias of wine marketers, for whom the Marin County appellation (the designation of where the grapes in a particular wine were grown) has little history or respect.

Growers must also contend with a host of local problems, such as an abundance of grape-loving deer and birds. There's also the coastal fog, which can aid the proper development of pinot noir and chardonnay, but can prevent the fruit from ripening sufficiently if it limits the sunshine too much.

To the north in Sonoma County, the encroachment of vineyards into open space and their replacing of orchards has erupted in controversy. However, there's little prospect that West Marin, where water can be scarce, will soon become a sea of thirsty vineyards.

Indeed, in West Marin, grapes represent a move toward diversity, not monoculture. Doughty said he believes his wines will blend well with the array of fine produce that is growing more and more common to the area. He now sells his wines out of his Vineyard Inn sales room, and plans to offer bottle and barrel samples in the near future.

"I'm hoping for the day we can make products out of all the fruit that we grow," he said. "Instead of letting Sonoma and Napa benefit from our quality."

As for the outlook for growing wine grapes in the region, Pasternak said, "I would say that the current prognosis is quite good."

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