“Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody’s face but their own,” Johnathan Swift, 1667-1745, The Battle of the Books, 1704.
I was a bit surprised recently when I spotted a number of bottles of Forefront wines at Sendik’s in Mequon on a pre-Super Bowl shopping binge. After I tried Forefront’s wines, I was blown away by their general quality.
Subsequent Web research revealed that Forefront is the crown jewel of the Pine Ridge winery, which was founded in Napa’s Stags Leap District 30 years ago by pioneer Gary Andrus. Gary applied his same spirit of quality to Oregon, where he opened the famed Archery Summit winery. With his wife’s able assistance in 2002, he opened Gypsy Dancer up there, followed by a spate of tirelessly terrific tinkering in New Zealand.
I wish Gary were still alive today so I could give him even more enthusiastic kudos. Unfortunately, his death a little over a year ago left many fans clamoring for his limited amount of residual wine. To me, it’s worth an emergency run to Sendik’s or to another fine retailer in order to snag his Cabernet Sauvignon (to me, the best since Joe Heitz’s Martha’s Vineyard) or his Pinot Noir, with its attendant delirious intensity.
And now, onto my tasting, using my usual A-F scoring scale, however subjective:
1) 2008 Forefront by Pine Ridge Sauvignon Blanc, $13.99. Clear, diamond-white color. Its medium body melded with a nicely intense and dancingly spicy nose. Long, fruity, lingering finish begged for more. A
2) 2009 Forefront by Pine Ridge Pinot Noir, $19.99. Vinted from cooler California sites that tend to produce profoundly deep wines, this beauty displayed typical bright red Pinot Noir color with medium body. Its nose was tightly intense with pronounced punches of cherries, which then carried nicely into the mouth along with hints of spice. This might reward aging – nice! A
3) 2008 Forefront by Pine Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon, $19.99. Dark, almost inky hue with heavy body. Deeply intense and fruity nose with teasing notes of berries and depth. In the mouth, it was headily fruity and intense with layers of blueberries overlaid with notes of eucalyptus. If I had a bag over my head, I’d have pegged it as a vibrant Heitz Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet while Joe Heitz was strutting at his finest. Great with some age, or with Kobe beef! A+
Today’s clear winner was Gary’s Cabernet Sauvignon.
I’d award the Price/Value Award to the Sauvignon Blanc, despite its price. It’s that good!
