Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016 - 52

TOP 100 WINERIES 2016

E STATE

Dr. Jerry Seps

Storybook Mountain
Jerry Seps planted zinfandel in the right place and farms his vines with
care, producing some of Napa Valley's most consistently beautiful reds.
The Site for Zin: This year marks Storybook Mountain's 12th consecutive Top 100 award and the 40th year since Jerry and Sigrid
Seps settled north of Calistoga, on a derelict vineyard that had been
destroyed by a fire in the early 1960s. The fire left thistles, ferns and
poison oak growing over the caves of the old Grimm Brothers' Wine
Vaults, dug in the 19th century. The hill above the caves faced north
toward Mount St. Helena and east to the Palisades. André Tchelistcheff, Napa Valley's preeminent winemaker at the time, told Seps that
the exposition and the red volcanic soils would make an ideal home
for zinfandel.
A Light Touch: Not long before he found the property, Seps had organized a tasting of Joseph Swan's zinfandels for his Les Amis du Vin
chapter in Southern California. Later, soon after he left his academic
career, he decided he needed training in zin. "I wrote him a postcard
and said, 'Joe, I'll come to work with you for free, but it has to be oneon-one,'" Seps recalls. When Swan assented, Seps spent a year with
the man widely considered the best zinfandel producer at the time.
"He took meticulous care of the wine," Seps says, "and taught me to
respect the grapes-not to push them in directions other than what's
in them."
Stamina and Finesse: Seps began by planting 22 acres all to zinfandel,
and has farmed organically from day one, releasing his first vintage in
1980. He opened his second vintage, a 1981 Reserve, when I accompanied David Darlington on a zinfandel research project in Napa Valley
in November of 2009. To me, the wine was numinous, which Darlington translated as "'weightless' and 'harmonious,' as in wind chimes,
say," in his February 2010 article in Wine & Spirits. "That isn't what
one expects from zinfandel, which often bears more resemblance to
heavy metal."
52

WINE & SPIRITS

BUYING GUIDE 2017

Founded: 1976
Winemaker/viticulturist: Jerry Seps
Associate winemaker:
Colleen Williams
Owners: Jerry and Sigrid Seps
Acres owned: 120; 40 planted
Annual production: 5,000 cases
Estate grown: 100%
Location: Calistoga, CA
Website: storybookwines.com

I've since tasted Reserves from 1984, 1986, 2005 and
2006, all of which showed a similar stamina and finesse.
Perhaps it's the balanced humidity in his cool caves that
helps preserve the freshness of his wine. When I ask if he
humidifies the air, he says no, and adds that he's never
measured it (though he seems to measure just about
everything else, with detailed, handwritten notes on
the progress of each season). Then he points out the
spring behind the carved oval vat positioned where
the three shafts of the cave connect.
Morning Sun: Seps and his daughter, associate winemaker Colleen Williams, now make three zinfandels
off the estate, selecting lots with the greatest intensity
and projected longevity for the Reserve. "By intensity,
I mean more layers, more of a lingering finish, not
more weight," he says. Eastern Exposures is selected
for finesse, and the 2013 carries the delicate floral
freshness of grapes ripened by the morning sun. Mayacamas Ranges is their fruit-forward wine, and in 2013,
its beauty is immediate, its racy energy carrying the wine's freshness
for days as it develops toward mouthwatering flavors of fresh-picked
black raspberries and bright, rustic mineral notes. It has the flavor
of Storybook Mountain, with tannins patterned after Mount St. Helena's volcanic rock. -J.G.

TOP-SCORING WINES
94 '13 Napa Valley Mayacamas Range Zinfandel $38 (10/16)
92 '14 Napa Valley Eastern Exposures Zinfandel $50 (10/16)
92 '13 Napa Valley Eastern Exposures Zinfandel $50 (10/16)

http://www.storybookwines.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016