The 30 biggest U.S. wineries by U.S. case sales in 2011, according to Wine Business Monthly, lists the top three as Gallo (75 million), The Wine Group (62 million) and Constellation (47 million). At No. 8 is Diageo, owner of Chalone, with 6 million cases. J. Lohr is at No. 16 with 1.25 million. Wente, at No. 22 with 650,000, tied with Hess Collection (owner of Sequana, a Santa Lucia Highlands standout), and Hahn Estates, at No. 29 with 400,000 cases, tied with Michael David.
Among the Wine Business Monthly hot small brands of 2011 is none other than Monterey’s Talbott Vineyards, coming in at No. 7. 
From the top, they are Wine by Joe (Dundee, Ore.), Cecchetti Wine Company (Sonoma), JC Cellars (Oakland), Truett Hurst (Dry Creek Valley), Barnard Griffin (Richland, Wash.), Bennett Valley Cellars (Sonoma), Talbott (Monterey), Veritas Vineyard (Afton, Va.), Barrister Winery (Spokane, Wash.) and Lone Madrone (Paso Robles). Wine by Joe’s claim to eventual fame is its Italian-style sparkler, called “Joe’s Secco,” which retails at $16. Cecchetti makes more than 260,000 cases, with brands Line 39 ($10 to $12), Redtree ($7 to $9) and Backhouse ($6 to $8) covering the lower end of the pricing curve. The Lake County Line 39 sauvignon blanc is decent.
If you’re a fan of big, rich reds that envelop you like a soft leather couch, Jeff Cohn’s JC Cellars 2008 “The Imposter” ($35) is a heady, wild ride of zinfandel-based wine, zipped up with syrah, tempranillo, carignan, grenache and a splash of viognier, which adds intrigue.
Commenting on the Talbott award, for which congratulations are certainly in order, Dan Karlsen cites homogeneity of ripeness of the 565-acre Sleepy Hollow Vineyard, from which few but Talbott will be lucky enough to source grapes after 2011: Pessagno will still have Sleepy in their cellar. Karlsen notes that Talbott is transitioning to screw cap, with 60 percent of their production going this route. He hopes all their high-end wines will also go to screw-cap closures.
Of the 2009 Logan chardonnay, Karlsen notes that it is 100 percent whole-cluster press, with no fining agents. He says making wine is like “nurturing children. If you start to push the kid around, you end up with a lesser person — like if you have a kid born to be an artist and force it to be a business major at Harvard.”
Celebrate Valentine’s Day right
Let’s all express our inner artistry with some creative Valentine’s gifts, since we are nigh upon eve of Valentine’s Day. Cupid is aiming get you out there to enjoy all the great wines and food and entertainment lined up for this special, once-yearly event. It’s a great place to score some Valentine loot for that special someone in your life, perhaps even yourself.
Here are some local, easily obtainable, Valentine-worthy wines:
Let’s start with the Double Gold award winning (Sf Chron) Hahn SLH 2010 pinot ($35)– what a smooth, silken, wonderful, well whipped together wine this is – for such a youth, it has admirable poise. Hey, we bought several bottles, so that says something! And the other wine we loved at Hahn was the Malbec, which really is impressive for its perky tannins, assertive 2nd gear acids and 3rd gear velocity.
Barry Jackson, Methode Champenoise master, has crafted a deliciously French-style sparkling for McIntyre’s new sparkling release (12 percent alcohol, $29), now on sale. Despite the clown on the label, which reminds me of the down-sized Hahn rooster, this is serious stuff, worthy of the price point, and deserving of a narrative underpinning its provenance. I was tickled by the aromas of fresh juicy apple tart, golden raisin buns fresh from the oven, and flavors of brioche with apple jelly and Meyer lemon marmalade — satisfying, yet lively, as the lemony bubbles dance a tingly tango, head to head with the background music notes of pear creme brulee. Buy a bottle for your sweetie – Cheryl Warner says so!
This would make such a lovely Valentine’s gift, packaged with a box of heart-shaped shortbreads with lemon icing, or some salted caramels.
Another wonderful gift idea would be the stalwart 2009 Garys Vineyard pinot from Morgan. Opening with ripe plums and soft-tanned leather, this is a size XL pinot, with flavors of delicious dark rye crackers, wildflower honey and brown sugar-cured ham. It’s almost a bit salty, with hints of tamari almonds. The texture is satisfying and just shy of chewy, and the just-right acidity carries the punchy pomegranate and brooding blueberries right to the medium-roast-coffee-tinged-with-nutmeg finish. I’d pair this with lamb or veal osso bucco and braised polenta.
So many people are in love with tempranillo, and the 2009 Clayhouse Estate tempranillo ($35) from Paso Robles shows why. This is a grape on a tear — like hybrid cars, very much in demand — and suddenly, everyone has one. Or should, if they want to appeal to the under-30 crowd. The Clayhouse Estate version is filled with juicy red fruits, tends toward low acidity and meaty but approachable tannins, and is pretty much the opposite of cabernet. Like Grenache, it’s a red-headed grape with a sunny temperament and congenial personality.
This example from Clayhouse is a bit richer and darker than most I’ve tried, owing to the intensity of the fruit from this site and the aging in Demptos American and Romanian oak, which adds a bit of a leathery edge that will integrate with bottle age.
In need of a crowd-pleasing, oak-driven chardonnay? The 2010 7th Heavenly chardonnay from Michael David is your oaky “fat cat”-style of chard, dripping with bacon and brown-sugar baked golden apples. The oaky smokiness would make it fun with pancetta-topped baked oysters or grilled fresh sardines. Hmm, it was pretty nice with pumpkin ravioli and sage-orange olive oil, too. So fat, it needs food.
Want a new grape to fall in love with this year? May we present the 2010 Lee Family verdelho, $15. If you’re Italian, you might subscribe to the theory that verdelho originated in Sicily. If you’re Portuguese, it’s definitely from Portugal. Regardless, during the 15th century, verdelho vines found their way to the Madeira Islands east of Morocco, moving into the Douro Valley of northern Portugal and then to the Anjou region in the Loire Valley of western France. Portuguese verdelho produces fortified wines, and is a major component in the famous Madeira wines.
What’s lovely about the Lee Family wine is its floral, tropical fruitiness, clean, fresh green papaya, pineapple guava and melon, combined with its high-flying acidity. At 13.2 percent alcohol, and 6.4 TA, it’s perfectly capable of handling lemon caper calamari salad, or grilled shrimp with lemon, garlic, tangerine juice and lime olive oil. Or fish tacos with tropical fruit salsa and a side fennel-radicchio slaw.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
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