The Craig

Hanging On ~ And Letting Go: Part 2 of 3

~ Elton Slone, GM & Winery Partner

I remember learning to slalom water ski as a middle schooler, and despite quickly figuring out how to get up on one ski, there were always the times when the boat would speed forward, the tip would dig, and I would swallow water and get dragged for a good bit before giving in and letting go of the rope.

I would come sputtering to the surface to a chorus from those in the boat of “Let go of the damn rope!”, as the elastic rope and wooden handle would appear suddenly from below the surface and slingshot past their surprised faces every time I held on too long.

Fast-forward 30 years to the final pre-bottling production meeting for our 2009 Cabernets in early September.  Our winemaker Stephen Tebb, consultant Keith Emerson, Bob Craig and I sat around our conference table and tasted through lot after lot of wine from Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain, Howell Mountain, and Affinity vineyards.

Following many sessions over the past 11 months and the usual teeth gnashing and disagreement, we had arrived at the final blending decision point. After tasting through the 80% blends of each Cabernet, I was, for once, stunned to silence.

In all vintages past, including the much-heralded 2007 wines, I found ample room to criticize one final time before bottling -- maybe a little hollow in the center, a touch of green on the side, short finish, not enough weight, a little light, constrained, rustic -- the list goes on and on.

This time, Stephen’s first vintage at the helm of production proved noteworthy, as it was easy to let go.  I could not find one negative thing to say about those wines. Buy a lottery ticket; there’s blood on the moon.Those 2009 wines are simply beautiful! Kudos to Stephen, Keith and the rest of the winery and vineyard crew.

After the final blends, we often have gallons left over that do not make the cut. While it may be tempting to say let’s blend in the remaining gallons and have more great wine, we have learned the hard way to simply let those gallons go.

When the time comes, Robert Craig Winery will release a miserly amount of freakishly fine 2009 Cabernets and a few cases of terrific Mt. George Cuvee. We will also incur a significant bulk wine loss as a result, ending up selling the gallons, which have cost us $70 each, for around $21 each to the bulk wine market. If we were a publicly held company or one which relied on volume, we would not be able to let those gallons go.

Over the last several years, we have done a lot of letting go in order to take our winery to the next level of wine quality, whether it be working with new cork and barrel suppliers, fine-tuning fruit sources, or adding new personnel and equipment. 

We’ve also been hanging on to Bob Craig’s original vision when he started the winery almost 20 years ago, which has earned us a dedicated following of fans of the Craig.

Today we’re still learning to “let go of the damn rope”, and eventually we might just produce some of the finest wines in the world.

~ to be continued

Hanging On ~ And Letting Go: Part 1 of 3

~ Elton Slone, GM & Winery Partner

Autumn officially arrived at 4PM on September 21^st. At my place in Sausalito, the furnace is silent from April until early November since the climate here along Richardson Bay and close to the Pacific makes a milder transition into winter than does the Napa Valley to my north.

What a surprise then to awaken to the sound of the furnace running and feel the unmistakable clear, cold bite of fall in my bedroom. I clambered out of bed to hastily close the sliding doors so that I could drink my coffee without seeing my breath at the same time.

What happened to the summer this year? Not only was it fleeting in feeling, the summer of 2010 was fleeting in terms of the number of actual warm days here in northern California. Statistically speaking, summer 2010 has been the coldest in the Bay Area for over 100 years.

Despite the cool summer, the abrupt transition to fall initiated a bout of reflective thinking which always arrives with the turning leaves and the pregnant rows of vineyards in wine country. Whereas spring is a time of renewal and collection, fall is a season of letting go.

My mom, who visited from Indiana for a week in mid-September, has always been a saver, a keeper. Notes, coupons, photos, letters, articles, shoe boxes, awards, clothing, furniture, dishes, you name it.

She recently sent along some pages from a journal I had been keeping in high school with a note attached commenting on the contents -- I might need to travel back home to the Midwest with a gas can and some matches soon!

Despite my constant frustration with a well-kept but cluttered house growing up, I have not been able to fully escape my genes. Check out my office sometime; I think I have a thank-you note to Julius Caesar in one of the paper stacks -- but I’m still working on that concept of letting go.

During my mom’s visits, we always find time to hit a big hike and have lunch outside at The Sand Dollar in Stinson Beach. She has been an athlete all of her life, and many times we would do up to 7 miles with considerable elevation gain.

   This year, she also made it to our Howell Mountain Cabernet release party on a perfect September day to see the winery for the first time. I think she really understood why I have so much love for the business and for the people at Craig.

Her 10-year battle with Parkinson’s shortened the hiking a bit, but the time out on Mount Tam together and lunch on the deck of the Sand Dollar was a perfect finish to the weekend -- definitely memories worth hanging onto!

A little extra clutter around the house while she stayed… no problem.

~ to be continued