Bernardus winemaker Dean De Korth
It was a happy night in Carmel Valley at the 9th Annual Bernardus Wine Dinner on Oct. 21. Growers, vintners and wine fans gathered to celebrate the hard work and great results of winemaker Dean De Korth and his team—and to enjoy a spectacular five-course meal prepared by Bernardus chefs Cal Stamenov and Ben Spungin to pair with the wines. Bernardus “Ben” Pon himself was in attendance, as were the growers behind some of Bernardus’ signature wines, including Frank Franscioni, Michael Griva and Mark Pisoni.
It’s clear that there’s tension these days among California winemakers because of this year’s unusual weather.
The word on the street is that California is going to have a terrible year, but such a sweeping statement is way too simplistic. Fortunately, the climate and wine fortunes of our local microclimates are quite different from what is happening in other regions, such as Napa.
Matt Shea, manager of Bernardus’ own vineyards, which are all located in Carmel Valley, points out that because Napa is expected to have a bad 2011, many people erroneously think that all of California is going to have a bad harvest this year. This might create an opportunity for people who know a little more about where their wines come from, and what part of the state is going to do well.
“Everyone’s talking about the harvest this year, with the rains and the weather. I want to just reassure people in our neck of the woods that we’re actually having a really excellent vintage down here,” an ebullient De Korth told guests at the dinner. “We’re getting actually stunning fruit down here. We’ve had a little bit of rain. It came and it went. The quality of the fruit is actually just superb this year. We’re getting a lot of great flavors. Really small grapes. Small fruit berries and small clusters. So I think it’s going to be a really special vintage.”
Bernardus vineyard manager Matt Shea, sampling this year’s harvest.
The highlights of the food and drink served up at the event were too many to list, but our table definitely gravitated to the smooth 2009 Ingrid’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, grown on site. Ingrid’s Vineyard, named for Ingrid Pon, Ben Pon’s wife, is the estate vineyard located right in front of the lodge, gracing the side of Carmel Valley Road. The bad news is that it’s not an easy bottle to come by, given the small size of the vineyard, and therefore, its small yield.
When it came to the food, Stamenov’s American Wagyu beef with roasted carrots, chanterelle mushrooms, tangy onion and wine sauce, which came paired with Bernardus’ 2006 Signature Marinus, was out of this world.
Eventually, of course, the meal had to come to an end. The coda was pastry chef Spungin’s “petit cheesecake” with poached pear, graham cracker crumble, toasted meringue and honey, paired with a 2008 Griva Vineyard Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Again, out of this world.
“This is a labor of love,” De Korth said of the dessert wine, inflecting his words with obvious pride. “It’s made in a very traditional manner, where we only pick the botrytis grapes in December. We usually go through two or three different times to just get the right type of purple, dark grapes. It’s made totally naturally. It’s very easy to make a dessert wine artificially, and to make it something sweet. But you don’t get this incredible complexity and character unless you make it in a traditional manner with just the botrytis grapes. It’s kind of an expensive wine to make, but it’s pretty fabulous, and you can thank Michael [Griva] for being patient enough to work with me on that and to help me make it every year.”
Indeed, the meal was a labor of love from start to finish. And it was a glorious celebration of what our land can produce at the hands of knowledgeable people who care deeply about what they are doing.—Rob Fisher
Ingrid’s Vineyard, the source of the Bernardus 2009
Ingrid’s Vineyard Pinot Noir
About the author
At Edible Monterey Bay, our mission is to celebrate the local food culture of Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey Counties, season by season. We believe in sustainability, and we believe everyone has a right to healthful, clean and affordable food. We think knowing where our food comes from is powerful, and we hope our magazine, website and newsletters inspire readers to get to know and support our local growers, fishers, chefs, vintners and food artisans.
