The Wine Guy - Greg Walter

I first met Michael Muscardini a number of years ago at a wine event – I’m not even sure which event it was, but I do remember him telling me about his “day job” running his construction company and his passion for the red wines he was making under his then relatively new Muscardini Cellars label.

Fast forward to about a month ago. I was invited to the Sixth Annual Muscardini Cellars Barrel Tasting event held at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art. It was a great event with a lot of people in attendance. The wines were terrific and interesting and I remembered that first meeting with Michael and thinking that he is really living his dream.

Michael Muscardini’s journey in wine – and that of Muscardini Cellars – began really with his grandfather Emilio Alchera who came to the United States and San Francisco from the village of Calliano in the Piemonte region of Italy. After saving his money as a worker helping to dig the Caldecott Tunnel, Emilio went into the grocery business and sold bulk wine out of his store locations. Like many of his countrymen, he also made a red table wine for his family.

Michael wanted to continue his grandfather’s tradition and legacy of winemaking and after 27 years of running his construction company, he was ready to make the jump to wine. In 2000 he planted his first vines – Sangiovese – and then in 2001 he began to study winemaking both with local mentors and at UC Davis and Sonoma State University. In 2002, he made his first wines from that Sangiovese.
Today, Michael has expanded quite a bit beyond that first bottling of Sangiovese. He sources fruit from several vineyards in and outside the Sonoma Valley and has won numerous awards for his wonderfully rich and texture driven wines. His wine lineup consists of a Barbera from the Pauli Ranch in the Ukiah Valley, a Sangiovese Rosato, Zinfandel and Sangiovese from the Monte Rosso Vineyard in the upper eastern reaches of the Sonoma Valley, a Syrah from Unti Vineyards in Dry Creek Valley, a second Syrah from the Gracie Creek Vineyard, a Super-Tuscan blend called Tesoro and another red blend, Fortuna, made up of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.

Here are my brief notes on some of the wines that I had the opportunity to taste back at the event in August.

2010 Rosato di Sangiovese Monte Rosso Vineyard: dry, bright fruit with bracing acidity. This is not a casual sipper; would work great with roasted chicken.
2009 Barbera Pauli Ranch Ukiah Valley: It’s harder to find California Barbera these days and this one is a real find. Rich, ripe berry flavors with a nice spicy/pepper note; very nice structure and balance.

2009 Syrah Gracie Creek: Intense aromas of pepper and anise are complemented by the rich blackberry flavors. Nice balance; needs a grilled steak.

2009 Zinfandel Monte Rosso Vineyards: Deep, rich berry flavors with black pepper and other savory spices; some tannin and oak are apparent on the palate, but this is a complex, delicious Zin.

2009 Sangiovese Monte Rosso Vineyards: This wine was really made for an earthy, hearty mushroom pasta. Rich berry flavors with black pepper and toasty oak; well balanced.
2009 Tesoro: This is a Sangiovese, Syrah and Cabernet blend; deep, dense, intense dark berry fruit with toasty oak and really nice structure.
I also had the opportunity to taste through several of the 2010 wines in barrel at the event. They were equally delicious and should be quite nice when they are released.

Muscardini Cellars shares a tasting room in Kenwood with Ty Caton Wines at 8910 Sonoma Highway. For more information, call 833.0526 or visit www.muscardinicellars.com. I definitely recommend you check them out!
Have a wine question? You can always email me at gswalter@pinotreport.com.

Greg Walter has been a Sonoma resident for 20 years. Greg has been in wine and food publishing for nearly 30 years, 15 of which were spent as a senior editor and later president of Wine Spectator magazine. Today he writes the PinotReport newsletter (www.pinotreport.com) and publishes books through his Carneros Press imprint (www.carnerospress.com).