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Somehow, at Far Niente in California's Napa Valley, such marketing shortsightedness seems not to have registered. The winemaker produced its first chardonnay in 1979 and debuted its first cabernet sauvignon in 1982. These have been the only wines to carry what has become one of the most prestigious labels in California. No zinfandel. No shiraz. No experiments with tempranillo. From 250 acres of the most beautiful wine country in the Valley, Far Niente makes only chardonnay and cabernet from five vineyards-one, the Stelling Vineyard, measures a modest 100 acres; another, Barrow Lane, in a cooler part of the Valley, only 18 acres. Visions Realized By focusing on only two varietals, Far Niente has been able to refine its viticulture, find the best grape clones and produce wines consistent with a magnificent, individual style, the way the late Gil Nickel envisioned it when he left a thriving nursery business to make wine at a broken-down, historic winery founded in 1885 (the Italian name means "without a care") that closed with the onset of Prohibition. Nickel bought the decrepit winery in 1979, poured money into its restoration-almost going bankrupt in the process- and by 1982 had brought the vineyards back to vitality (prior to then, Far Niente's wines were made off-site). One might have expected Nickel to be unyielding about what he wanted to do at Far Niente: He had studied math and physics, designed rockets, made some money and indulged a passion for motorcycles and classic cars (many now are on view at the winery, including a 1953 Jaguar and a rare Ferrari 500 Superfast). A Lear jet also became part of his collection somewhere along the way. Nickel knew he did not want to follow the commercial track so many California wineries had- to make huge, butter-and-vanilla-rich, overly oaky chardonnays and massive, overly extracted oaky cabs- preferring instead to copy the finesse of French white Burgundies and the best red Grand Crus of Bordeaux. Unlike some California wineries, Far Niente has always blended its cabernet with traditional Bordeaux varietals like merlot and cabernet franc to balance the cabernet sauvignon's tannins-now fairly standard in California viticulture. As a result, the wine press has consistently praised Far Niente's wines for their "class" and for serving as benchmarks for modern winemaking. Which is why Far Niente chardonnays carry price tags of $50 and up, and the cabernets a cool $100. "The whole idea was to stick with the French model and never go toward the bigger California style," says Erik Nickel, Gil's nephew, now a partner at Far Niente. "We have a house style, and we have never had different estate labels. Far Niente is and will always be unique." Not that the company hasn't been forward-looking. In 2001 it launched Nickel & Nickel winery, which was born out of a desire to create something completely separate and to focus on single vineyards rather than blends of their vineyards' wines. "Our Nickel & Nickel cabernets and chardonnays are 100 percent of the varietal from specific estates, not blends like Far Niente. And they are distinctly different from one another," Nickel says. It also produces a very well-received late-harvest dessert wine called Dolce, which went into production in 1989. At a time when the world wine market is in a slump- just too much wine out there- connoisseurs can't get enough of Far Niente's wines, which says as much about the passion and vision of Gil Nickel as it does about the way California wineries are catching up to it.
The Best of Far Niente Far Niente Oakville 2001 Serve with: A joy to drink with char-grilled beef and lamb.
Far Niente Chardonnay Serve with: Perfect with shellfish and the simplest white fish.
Nickel & Nickel Cabernet Sauvignon Serve with: Great with wild game
Dolce Serve with: Try it with fresh fruit or as a dessert on its own. |
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It has become the all-too-common rule of commerce for California wineries: producing too many different wines from too many different varietals. In France and Italy, tradition has long dictated that a winery should produce only one or two wines from well-established local grapes, but an internationalization of the world wine market has encouraged California vintners to maximize the possibilities by producing whatever they think the fickle wine consumer might want. This year spicy viognier, next year an Italian Sangiovese, maybe even an Australian-style shiraz.