All across western California, in huge steel tanks and small oak barrels, grape juice from the autumn harvest is bubbling to be reborn as wine -- and omens for the 1990 vintage look good. True, late spring rains on the north coast meant that the crop of Chardonnay, the state's premier white-wine grape, was smaller than normal. No such problem with the reds, though. And the nose knows. Jim Fetzer, one of 10 siblings who run the family's 1,400-acre vineyard in Mendocino County, says his vintners tell him that "the winery hasn't smelled this good in 10 years."
"This is the...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
