Berger: Interesting wines from the Sierra foothills

PLACERVILLE - To red wine sophisticates who are blessed with a lot of money, Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon is the best wine to illustrate how great California reds can be.

No debate there. Napa cabernets are routinely compared with the greatest wines of Bordeaux, sell for outrageous prices, are in-demand collectibles, and are hot on the auction market.

To red wine sophisticates who are on a budget and want to get great red wines that are relatively unheralded, the Sierra foothills is their stomping ground.

And it is ground with a view.

Throughout the adjoining El Dorado and Amador counties are hills, small valleys, and handsome rolling mesas with striking views, great red wines, and a growing reputation for whites we well.

Cabernet sauvignons are made here, and very nice ones at that. But the heart of this wine country is planted with grapes that make dramatic wines even though they are relatively less well known.

The fastest growing of these is the Italian grape barbera (bar-BEAR-uh), a lighter-weight red wine grape that for decades was the No. 2 grape (to nebbiolo) in Italy’s Piemonte region.

Barbera makes a superb wine to go with pasta under tomato sauces, since the tartness of the tomato works nicely to balance the acid in the wine. As a higher-acid red wine, you might think it’s hard to consume a lot of barbera.

But for me, it’s one of the world’s most appealing wines because it has a lot less tannin, which gives many red wines that astringent, puckery-ness that can take years of storage to age out.

Though barbera can age a few years, one of the taste treats is to serve it young and cool with red meats and see how the tannins merge the flavors of the foods and allow them to taste a lot better.

On June 13, a fast-growing coterie of barbera supporters will gather at Montevina Winery to participate in the Barbera Festival, a place to taste many examples and to enjoy the foothills beauty. Details: http://barberafestival.com. Tickets are going fast.

But barbera isn’t the only reason to visit the foothills. Many red wine grapes thrive here, not the least of which is zinfandel (bright, jammy and spiced); petite sirah (hearty and tannic), the relatively obscure Alicante Bouschet (pitch black and dense), and even Malbec (blueberry fruit and charming spice notes).

Jeff Runquist, whose makes two barberas (a “regular” at $24 and a Cooper Vineyard wine at $28), has long been a proponent of the barbera here. He says the foothills fruit is reliable and of consistent quality from year to year.

Those who live in nearby Sacramento, 30 miles to the west, would tell you that the twin counties are rather warm. Sacramento in the summer is pretty hot.

But when you talk with local winemakers, they all say the same thing: what keeps the foothills’ vineyards from being as hot are the cool nights due to the fact that most vineyards are at altitude. Most are at 2,000 feet; some go closer to 3,000 feet. Ground temperatures drop at night, and that helps to preserve the vital acidity of the grapes.

I asked Runquist about the last 20 years, when zinfandel became a very popular wine with many wine lovers. He said that the foothills area does well with zinfandel, but added, “Zin still sells pretty well around here, especially after the barbera is all sold out!”

Wine of the Week: 2013 Obscurity Cellars Alicante Bouschet, Fair Play ($28) – Related to Oakstone Winery, this tiny property makes a small amount of a stunning red wine from this lightly regarded grape. The wine’s aroma is striking with black pepper and earthy notes along with fresh blueberries and dark cherries. The wine’s aftertaste is pretty dense, and it is best with hearty meat dishes.

Sonoma County resident Dan Berger publishes “Vintage Experiences,” a weekly wine newsletter. Write to him at winenut@gmail.com.