AUTHOR: Dave McIntyre TITLE: Wine's Bad Boy Grows Up DATE: 9/16/2006 02:46:00 PM ----- BODY:
For years I've been a fan of Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon fame, ever since he entranced me with a Roussanne that turned out to be a Viognier when someone took a closer look at the vines. My favorite of his wines has been the Big House line, especially the Rhone-like Big House Red that proved California can indeed make delicious wine for $10 a bottle. Like many of Grahm's fans, I was disappointed when he announced this summer that he had sold the Big House label. A few weeks after his announcement, I met with him at the offices of Bonny Doon Vineyards in Santa Cruz, California. Grahm spoke at length about his determination to focus on premium, estate-grown wines farmed biodynamically, as well as the transformative power of fatherhood. The maverick who held a public wake for the cork and derided Robert Parker with the mock headline, "The Emperor Has No Nose!," now says, "I need to shut up and make wine." Read my account of the interview in WineLine 57.
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