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Rh?ne Ranger’s Bonny Doon Vineyards Sparkle

Randall Grahm, the irrepressible owner/winemaker of Bonny Doon Vineyards in Santa Cruz would never want a customer, potential or otherwise, to spend too much time trying to find a unique wine to brighten his meal. Thus, 21 wines are currently available from this renowned winery. It is no fluke that Randall’s wines are the darlings of heavy duty wine collectors and the world’s great wine writers, as in Robert M. Parker Jr., the most influential international wine writer ever. The wines are, for the most part, stunning and seductive. Randall comes to us with a seriousness of purpose unsurpassed by anyone, but he never loses sight of the great laugh in life, waiting to be plucked for use in his ersatz historical explanations of his wines’ pedigrees. His conversation is sprinkled with the humor of a stand-up comedian, but follow the thread and you will learn an immense amount about making wine today in California.

I recently joined Randall for a dinner at Roy’s of Newport Beach, a restaurant serving enlightened Pacific Rim cuisine, and which has a wine list of its own that was put together with much professionalism and study. There, we tasted half a dozen of the current releases, but there’s so much more for you to discover.

Randall’s self-admitted theme is worth noting:

n To have as much fun with the wine as the relevant governmental agencies will allow.

n To produce wines and labels that will scintillate the sensibilities of the most jaded.

n To retain natural qualities of the grapes through careful handling and minimal cellar treatment.

n To pay attention to the chestnut that wine is produced in the vineyard and elicits the expression of terroir. The latter word is beloved by French winemakers for its connotation of the sense of “earth” imparted to the grapes, the subliminal flavor of the soil’s components.

The bio according to Randall, reads like this: Born in LA in 1953, attended Uncle Charlie’s Summer Camp (UC Santa Cruz) and was a permanent liberal arts major. Segued into sweeping floors at the Wine Merchant in Beverly Hills, but was allowed to taste great French wines as an aside. Got a degree in viticulture from UC Davis in 1979, where his single-minded obsession with Pinot Noir and a leprechaun-on-the-loose personality forever changed the hallowed halls. With family backing, the Lilliputian Bonny Doon winery emerged in the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1981.

In ’86, he released the first vintage of Le Cigare Volant (flying saucer), a tongue-in-cheek version of Ch & #226;teauneuf-du-Pape. By 1987, Randall had fallen into the abyss of Rh & #244;ne varietals and became known thereafter as the Rh & #244;ne Ranger. The medals, plaques, scrolls and sundry accolades that have been bestowed upon the winery along the way would fill a mini-museum. There’s even an asteroid, the Rhoneranger, named in his honor. Most of the wines are vintage ’96 through ’98 in the wine shops or on direct order from the winery , the best possibility of getting them , thus I am not listing years below but merely the character of each wine. In all of the descriptors, I cannot put it better than Randall himself, so I’ll put his soulful comments in quotes.

Starting with some of the whites and pinks, we find so many alternatives to tired old Chardonnay. The pink wines are serious, I’ll admonish, not effeminate pours with blush color that have given pinks a bad name. The Vin Gris de Cigare, from Grenache grapes, is a delight of fresh fruit flavors from a summer day, a “Technicolor daydream” floating through a melange of berries, guavas and “electric watermelon.” Critique of Pure Riesling combines the best aesthetics of the Riesling grape. Randall says, “It is categorically imperative that you buy this wine.” We at the wine dinner did find it a bit magical with its stone fruit flavors and clean texture. The Pacific Rim Gew & #252;rztraminer is a gift from the soul for Asian-tinged food or Indian dishes. It is a sexy wine with spiciness for upfront interest and flavors like lychee, mango and citrus filling out the form.

And, being the red wine drinker I am, I share some of the intriguing reds that often fill my glass. Le Cigare Volant, which unfortunately is allocated, is Randall’s blend of Syrah (a higher percentage in the current ’97 release), Mourv & #269;dre and Grenache. It sports “heaps of primary fruit,” a peppery touch for added enthusiasm, and upfront tannins that will recede and round out this lovely package after you tuck it in the corner of your cellar for three or four years. Grenache Village has a complex pedigree. Deep plum color meets the fragrance of rhubarb, strawberry, peaches and nectarines. To preserve every essence, it is unfiltered. Under the Italianesque Ca’Del Solo banner are five wines: Malvasia Blanca, which he calls “vinous Lolita;” Big House Red, a rival to the indulgent Super Tuscans; La Farfalla Charbono, inky, dark, brooding with about as much blackberry as a wine can handle; Sangiovese, bright fruit, nice acidity and piquant flush in the finish; and the allocated Barbera, a “bravado” showing of raspberry, cassis, blackberry, tobacco and dried cherries that was even great with my chocolate souffle dessert one evening.

There’s a whole group of dessert and fortified wines. Not being able to convince Randall to tell the story of his Muscat Vin de Glaci & #269;re wine, I rose to the challenge. Grapes got frostbite one year, but having high brix content, got crushed and bottled under a whimsical Ice Wine label Randall invented. BATF came after him (Ice Wine belongs to the Germans), so, undeterred, he now throws the grapes in the freezer to encourage a few ice crystals and bottles up this luscious potion year after year under the aforementioned label, which means ice box wine in French. Various fruit infusions are used for other macerated dessert wines, and there’s his “strong pink wine” called NV Grenacha, an esoteric and very fruity ap & #233;ritif wine laced with a Grenache-based brandy. I adore it. I went to the dinner in a trendy ankle-length skirt, sequined jean jacket and dangly star-shaped earrings. With these wines and Randall Grahm beside me at the table to carry on irreverently, I fit right in! Randall Grahm is devilishly brilliant, blessed with an ability to find happiness in everything, and he is a true gift to the wine industry. Life is good when you know how to live it. As for price, how about $9 to $16 from the winery?

The phone for ordering at Bonny Doon is (831) 425-4518. You will probably get Nadine or Cedar on the other end. They will fax you a complete order sheet and get you on the wine road to success.

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