Showing posts with label Francis Ford Coppola. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Francis Ford Coppola. Show all posts

Sunday, May 8, 2011

COPPOLA WANTS TO RESURRECT INGLENOOK


Film director and wine baron Francis Ford Coppola has undertaken the huge project of trying to breathe life back into the downtrodden Inglenook brand.


San Francisco Chronicle article in the business section reported that Coppola has acquired the Inglenook name from the Livermore, California-based company The Wine Group.  Coppola's Rubicon Estate in Napa Valley is on the actual property which used to be Inglenook.  According to the article, he intends to transform the property into America's premier wine estate.

Inglenook enjoyed a three-decade run as one of America's top quality wine producers.  That period ended in the mid-1960s when the brand was sold to United Vintners.  That started a decline which resulted in the Inglenook label landing in wine's bargain basement alongside Paul Masson, Almaden and Franzia.

Inglenook's current product is looked upon by many as plonk, but Coppola points out that bottles from the company's heyday are still regarded as some of the best Cabernets in the world.  His intention is to bring back that kind of quality to the Inglenook name.

Saturday, November 13, 2010

FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA ROSSO 2008


Coppola Rosso

Francis Ford Coppola has paid homage to his Italian ancestry many times in his career, both as a filmmaker and a vintner.  His trilogy of Godfather movies portrayed the strong sense of family that exists in the Italian-American culture.  Most of the characters may have been criminals, but hey, family is family.  His Francis Ford Coppola Winery is also an outgrowth of his heritage.

Coppola's family history, as with many Italian-American families, has a close link with wine.  If my memory serves, he credits his Uncle Mikey with setting the wine stage for him.  Wine was always on the dinner table, every night.  It was everyday wine, nothing special or fancy, but it was good wine.  Coppola's Rosso and Bianco labels are tributes to that tradition.
The '08 Rosso is a blend of 65% Zinfandel, 21% Syrah and 14% Cabernet Sauvignon.  The fruit comes from Lodi, CA and is vinted at the Coppola wine kingdom in Geyserville in Sonoma County.  It's billed as an everyday, food-friendly wine.  The alcohol content is a reasonable 13.5% abv and it usually costs around ten dollars per bottle.  I bought mine on sale for eight.
It's purple color is fairly light - you can see through at the core and it looks downright anemic around the edges.  The nose, though, is huge.  Bombastic, bright cherry aromas mingle with cola and a hint of brambles.  The palate is just as intense.  The cherries are joined by blackberries and framed by smokey cola and graphite notes.  There's a lot of cedar and spice in the flavor profile, too.  The wood makes itself known in no uncertain terms.  The finish is long and nuanced, with a red licorice flavor that really lingers.
Winemaker Corey Beck utilizes the aromatics of the Zinfandel, the spice of the Syrah and the heft of the Cab to craft a wine with so much character you might have to break with tradition and call it fancy - even if it is on the dinner table every night.