Charles Krug Winery - Loved It!

One of the most enjoyable wine tastings we experienced during our October trip was at Charles Krug (http://www.charleskrug.com/) on the north side of St. Helena in the Napa Valley.

Charles Krug was founded by Prussian immigrant Charles Krug in 1861, just 3 years after the first winery was established in the valley. Krug ran the winery until his death in 1892. It was sold to Italian immigrant Cesare Mondavi in 1943. It is currently run by his son Peter.

Peter’s brother Robert worked at the winery until he was fired in 1965, and left to found his own winery - Robert Mondavi - in 1966.

Charles Krug owns 850 acres in 11 vineyards in four different areas of the Napa Valley.

At Charles Krug, we asked for Art, and told him that Whitney from Louis M. Martini had sent us. He was gracious and very knowledgeable. 

Art

I explained to Art that I was gathering information for a presentation and tasting I planned to do for our wine club in February, 2012. I explained that before coming to California on this trip, I had naively thought that I could do my presentation on the wines of Napa and Sonoma. After learning that there were so many different microclimates and terroirs in Napa and Sonoma, I realized that my chosen theme was too broad. I was trying to narrow the theme and thought that perhaps I should limit the tasting to wines of Napa or wines of Sonoma. Art came up with a better suggestion - that I pick one type of wine and do it for both areas; e.g., the Zinfandels of Napa and Sonoma. That’s what I’ve decided to do.

The wine tasting menu had 14 wines - 2 whites and 12 reds. We tried 9 wines - 1 white and 8 reds. Five of them were excellent - the most at any of the 23 vineyards we visited. The prices below include both the retail and the wine club prices:

- 2010 St. Helena Sauvignon Blanc - very nice - $18/$14.40

- 2009 Carneros Pinot Noir - very nice $25/$20

- 2008 St. Helena Zinfandel - excellent - $25/$20

- 2008 Merlot, 79% Merlot, 15% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Syrah, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon - very nice - $24/$19

- 2009 Yountville Cabernet Sauvignon, 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 2% Syrah, 1% Malbec - Ex - $27/$21.60

- 2009 Limited Release Pinot Noir - Dr. Galante Vineyard, Green Valley, Russian River, proprietary blend, 179 case produced 0 excellent - $50/$40

- 2009 Limited Release St. Helena Zinfandel, proprietary blend - excellent - $60/$48

- 2008 150^th Anniversary 1.5L Magnum Cabernet Sauvignon, 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot - excellent - $150/$120

- 2007 Petit Verdot, 100% Petit Verdot - nice