California may have an energy shortage but there will be no wine shortage. In Year 2000 California winegrowers harvested and crushed a record 3.3 million tons of wine grape varieties. This is up 27 per cent from the previous year.

Contributing to the record tonnage was the fact that 32,000 new bearing acres of grapes came into production. Chardonnay was again the leading wine variety crushed, accounting for 20 per cent to 1.5 million tons, followed by French Colombard, 13 per cent; Zinfandel, 12 per cent; Cabernet Sauvignon, l1 per cent; and Merlot, 9 per cent.

And there was a lot of variety too. Some 59 red wine varieties were crushed as well as 40 different white wine varieties. Highest average price per ton for the reds was pinot noir at $1,791 and among the whites Viognier at the average per ton price of $1,029.

All of which means that the marketing people must keep busy selling it.

Kendall-Jackson originally created a new Collage Series of wines which were strictly for export. However after using Texas as a test market it was decided that the Collage series will do equally well at home.

Two of the first releases of the Kendall-Jackson California Collage series include a 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz and a 1998 Zinfandel-Shiraz.

The Australians were first to blend Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon in their bottlings. Winemaker Randy Ullom used his own blending skills to pair Zinfandel and Shiraz in a bottling.

Both of these releases are something of a bargain priced below $10. Both blends have enjoyed almost a year of small oak barrel aging and the result is a smooth, flavorful bottling perfect with everyday meals and as soft on the pocketbook as the palate.

Much of the increase in production has come from new vineyards in the Central Coast counties and California winemakers have been quick to tap into this new source for quality grapes.

One good example is M. Trinchero 1998 Family Selection Merlot. Winemaker Derek Holstein blended this bottling with grapes from Monterey, San Luis Obispo and Napa county.

The blend was then aged in French and American oak barrels for one year. Here is a vintage full of flavors but retaining the softness that has made this varietal skyrocket in popularity.

Again using grapes from both the Central Coast counties as well as Mendocino and Sonoma counties is Winemaker Ullom's 1999 Kendall Jackson Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay. Year after year this is the best selling chardonnay in the U.S.

This is one of the good ones, priced just over $10, and with all the classic flavors that make a good chardonnay--buttery, creamy flavors and a hint of toasty oak. Rich in both aroma and flavor and perfect either as a cocktail wine or with food.

In the 1999 Kendall-Jackson Sauvignon Blanc Winemaker Randy Ullom has added small amounts of Semillon, Viognier and Chardonnay to make a blend that is full of fruit flavors, yet crisp and delicate to the palate. Priced at $10.

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Last Update:4/1/01