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Mondavi's 'M' sells out and reclaims the family honor
By John Mariani |
April 5, 2009, Sunday
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WITH the world's wineries full to the brim and prices dropping for even the most illustrious labels, the idea of introducing a new Californian cabernet sauvignon at the cult wine price of US$200 a bottle seems like either sheer folly or canny marketing.
"I didn't time the introduction of 'M' too well, one month before the economy really crashed," admitted Michael Mondavi, who rolled out his new wine recently to wholesalers, retailers and writers. It's the 2005 vintage following two attempts he didn't feel good enough to bottle as "M."
Yet even with the high price for a new label, "M" already has sold its 700-case supply.
"I could have sold it all to my mailing list," said Mondavi, 65, "but distributors, retailers and restaurateurs have helped me throughout my career and I want to support them. Only 200 cases went to subscribers." For the rest, "60 percent to restaurants and 40 percent to retail, although with this economy, those percentages may reverse." Mondavi anticipates he will never make more than 1,200 cases a year.
"M" is Mondavi's attempt to restore the luster of his own reputation and name after his family, headed by his late father, Robert, lost control of their company in 2004 to Constellation Brands.
Michael then founded Folio Wine Partners, representing two dozen domestic and foreign wineries, including his own Oberon label, Italy's Marchesi de Frescobaldi and Spain's Clos Dominic.
To create "M," with his son Rob and wine maker Tony Coltrin, Mondavi 10 years ago chose a 7-hectare vineyard site called Animo ("soul" in Italian), at Atlas Peak in the Napa Valley. Walking the vineyards 20 times in 3 1/2 weeks, they picked ripening grapes from a dozen zones, hand-harvesting the higher elevations, then the lower ones. A post-fermentation maceration lasted 18 to 22 days, followed by 22 months in French oak, followed by a year in bottle.
Contrary to common practice among Napa cabernet producers, Mondavi chose not to blend in other grapes like merlot and cabernet franc. Instead he hearkened back to the 100 percent cabernets that California made in the 1970s which won high points in critics' ratings.
"When I was making wine with my father, I always used some merlot or cab franc," he recalled. "Only the 1973 vintage was 100 percent cabernet sauvignon. So I assumed 'M' would be a blend, too. But I found that because cabs from hillside vineyards are so much more complex, I didn't need the other varietals to achieve the character I wanted. If I think we can improve that character, I might add other grapes in the future.
"M is bold but not overpowering. It's not your typical California cabernet. And while I think it's ready to be enjoyed today, 'M' can easily be laid down for 30 years."
That's an iffy proposition for any wine maker to make, for even some of the greatest cabs from the Napa Valley have not fared well beyond a decade. Many of those blockbuster 100 percent cabs of the 1970s and 1980s were, in retrospect, simply unbalanced and overwhelming.
Yet I think Mondavi has got it right with "M."
"I didn't time the introduction of 'M' too well, one month before the economy really crashed," admitted Michael Mondavi, who rolled out his new wine recently to wholesalers, retailers and writers. It's the 2005 vintage following two attempts he didn't feel good enough to bottle as "M."
Yet even with the high price for a new label, "M" already has sold its 700-case supply.
"I could have sold it all to my mailing list," said Mondavi, 65, "but distributors, retailers and restaurateurs have helped me throughout my career and I want to support them. Only 200 cases went to subscribers." For the rest, "60 percent to restaurants and 40 percent to retail, although with this economy, those percentages may reverse." Mondavi anticipates he will never make more than 1,200 cases a year.
"M" is Mondavi's attempt to restore the luster of his own reputation and name after his family, headed by his late father, Robert, lost control of their company in 2004 to Constellation Brands.
Michael then founded Folio Wine Partners, representing two dozen domestic and foreign wineries, including his own Oberon label, Italy's Marchesi de Frescobaldi and Spain's Clos Dominic.
To create "M," with his son Rob and wine maker Tony Coltrin, Mondavi 10 years ago chose a 7-hectare vineyard site called Animo ("soul" in Italian), at Atlas Peak in the Napa Valley. Walking the vineyards 20 times in 3 1/2 weeks, they picked ripening grapes from a dozen zones, hand-harvesting the higher elevations, then the lower ones. A post-fermentation maceration lasted 18 to 22 days, followed by 22 months in French oak, followed by a year in bottle.
Contrary to common practice among Napa cabernet producers, Mondavi chose not to blend in other grapes like merlot and cabernet franc. Instead he hearkened back to the 100 percent cabernets that California made in the 1970s which won high points in critics' ratings.
"When I was making wine with my father, I always used some merlot or cab franc," he recalled. "Only the 1973 vintage was 100 percent cabernet sauvignon. So I assumed 'M' would be a blend, too. But I found that because cabs from hillside vineyards are so much more complex, I didn't need the other varietals to achieve the character I wanted. If I think we can improve that character, I might add other grapes in the future.
"M is bold but not overpowering. It's not your typical California cabernet. And while I think it's ready to be enjoyed today, 'M' can easily be laid down for 30 years."
That's an iffy proposition for any wine maker to make, for even some of the greatest cabs from the Napa Valley have not fared well beyond a decade. Many of those blockbuster 100 percent cabs of the 1970s and 1980s were, in retrospect, simply unbalanced and overwhelming.
Yet I think Mondavi has got it right with "M."
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