Ralph Hertelendy of Hertelendy Vineyards

Ralph Hertelendy, a relative newcomer to winemaking, seems to be hitting all the high notes.  Hertelendy is tuning up his Napa Valley premium wines to express all the nuances of the region, an orchestral compliment of Chardonnay, a Bordeaux red blend, and Cabernet Sauvignon, culminating in the release of his third vintage of the flagship Cabernet wine for Hertelendy Vineyards.  He conducts fruit from some of the very best vineyards that Napa has to offer, Atlas Peak, Pritchard Hill, Howell Mountain, Silverado Bench, and Oakville, blending them methodically until they come together in perfect harmony, building to a crescendo of flavor and lingering finish.  And in the coda of this composition is a haunting lilt of oak, which enriches the progression of the wine’s aromas and flavors.  Hertelendy strikes a chord among fans of deeply satisfying, bold and elegant wines, fine tuning the acoustics of varietals and vineyards, a prelude to a harmonious concerto of wine.  And with a swirl of liquid art in the glass, a few secrets are revealed along the way.

Hertelendy fell in love with wine at a young age, enjoying a first sip of a French Grand Cru at age 5, “It peaked my interest, I remember having my first sip at one of my parents’ dinner parties.”  But it wasn’t just the flavor, it was the way wine brought people together, “Wine was the most social commodity in the world, being an extrovert, I feed off that energy.”  Trained in classical music, he went on to get a business degree from the University of San Francisco, but he never forgot his passion for wine.  In fact, he sees the parallels between music and wine, likening the wine barrels’ influence to an instrument, “I have certain barrels, for instance, that only touch on the high notes, like a piccolo does in an orchestra, and if it just stood alone, it wouldn’t be as interesting as it is when it’s fully integrated in the whole.”

Hertelendy came to winemaking serendipitously, starting with a teenage desire to be accepted and popular at a new school.  As a high school freshman, he made beer in his parent’s basement, by his own admission “the worst tasting beer I’ve ever had in my life”, but it was good enough to win over his new classmates, and the seed was planted, to create wine that he enjoyed drinking.  Ten years later, in 2006, in the same basement that launched that high school brew, Hertelendy created a Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec, inspired to make a wine that would be the life of the party.  Disappointed with the results, he realized, “I had no idea what I was doing, I was reading a lot of books, but I thought that it was my job to create the ugly duckling into the beautiful swan.  I didn’t realize that your wine is only as good as your grapes, and I was buying relatively cheap grapes at that time.”  So Hertelendy “jump-started everything”, reading Karen MacNeil’s Wine Bible and becoming a Level 1 Sommelier.  From study to practice, he switched to production, working as a winemaker’s assistant for Casey Flat Ranch Winery, and in sales with several Napa Valley wineries.  He discovered that winemaking was literally in his DNA.  His great uncle Gábor Hertelendy had produced wines from vineyards on the north shore of Lake Balaton in Hungary, bottled with the local cooperative’s label, but eventually lost control of his lands under Communist rule, although he continued to work the land as a hired hand.

Always in the back of his mind, he had the desire to make his own wine, until “I realized I’d have to make millions of dollars to create a winery.  I thought to myself I could start small, maybe I can make this happen if I go all in, that’s what I did.”  And all in he went, buying a four-acre vineyard in 2014 below Howell Mountain in Napa Valley, just before the most recent boom in Napa land prices.  “Rockwell Ridge” shares the same general location as Howell Mountain, but because it sits 35 feet below the demarcation line for Howell Mountain, it is considered a Napa Valley AVA.  Hertelendy remembered, “When I saw the vineyard, I saw the potential, it has the most breathtaking view of the whole valley.  But it was kind of a savage vineyard, he (the previous owner) didn’t cull the vines, he didn’t do anything to it, just let it grow savagely.  So I got in there, started supercropping, so that there’s only 2 clusters per shoot which means I would drop a lot of my potential yield to create a more concentrated, more complex final product.” And speaking of serendipity, this mountain slope vineyard contains a mix of volcanic soils, connecting Hertelendy with his Hungarian winemaking ancestors whose vineyards thrived on the volcanic slopes of Lake Balaton.

Quality is the driving force behind Hertelendy Wines, illustrated by Hertelendy’s committment to excellence, from the wines themselves, which he considers “Liquid Art” to the smallest details that make them stand out.  Heavier bottles, longer corks, and the Hertelendy family crest on the labels frame what’s in the bottles, with different themes for each wine.  The Hertelendy name graces three different wines, a Russian River Chardonnay, a Signature Mountain Blend, and the flagship Cabernet Sauvignon, all crafted in conjunction with his consultant, Phillip Corrallo-Titus, renowned for his work at Chappellet Vineyards.  Hertelendy notes, “When we do our blendings together, he always wants to do the refinement and elegance from his expertise, I always want to bring the boldness and the big fruit-driven notes, so we kind of meet in the middle, it’s a huge tug of war.  That’s why I call it Bold Elegance, because it’s kind of a bridge of both worlds.”  He barrel ages the Chardonnay for 15 months, the red wines for 23 months, and all are aged in bottle for another 6-7 months before release.

Ralph shared his wines and enthusiasm with the LA Wine Writers, over a four course lunch at Cafe del Rey, expertly prepared by Chef David Vilchez.  Pouring his 2015 Hertelendy Russian River Valley Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard, he observed, “I’m all about quality so I wanted to create something that was a Cabernet lover’s style Chardonnay, big, opulent, full throttle, elegant.”  The grapes, grown in one of the best Chardonnay sites in the country and most optimal climate, are the last to be picked in late September, getting a long hang time to develop rich flavors.  Native yeast and barrel fermented, unfined and unfiltered, “It basically has a lot of the methodology that Marcassin and other big Chardonnay houses use, I’m not really reinventing the wheel, but I am trying to fully express the terroir of which I’m working with.”  The wine is integrated and well-balanced, with honeysuckle and tropical notes, beguiling in its golden color and baking spice accents.  And while those descriptors might apply to many other Chardonnays, this one has a secret, hidden in the Leonardo da Vinci theme label.  Hertelendy explained, “You know how da Vinci used to write his journals backwards?  So I created my own da Vinci Code, with gold foil, but there’s a secret message I put in the gold foil.  Just like Leonardo da Vinci, I like to put little secrets here and there where not everyone knows about it.  You can see when the bottles get chilled down, the labels change colors.  When the labels change color, it’s the optimal drinking temperature for Chardonnay, for me, it’s 48 degrees.”  A slight of hand achieved by thermochromic ink and “Hertelendy” spelled backwards on the capsule covering the cork spark a touch of fun with a really beautiful Chardonnay.  Delicious on its own, it paired very well with the first course, a Kale Salad with Baby Tomatoes, Chickpeas, Almonds, and Parmesan Cheese, drizzled with a Curry Dressing.

The Hertelendy Signature Mountain Blend 2015 is a “Right Bank approach” blend, Merlot-dominant at 81%, with 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Malbec.  Made with mountain and valley fruit from several high end vineyards, and barrel-aged in new French and Hungarian oak barrels for 23 months, this is an opulent, sexy wine that seduces with its blueberry, plum, forest floor, and vanilla oak notes.  Complex on the nose and palate, it received a 95 point score from wine critic Jeb Dunnick.  Smooth and dense, it was delightful with the second course, Penne Pasta with Pancetta, Olive Oil, White Wine, Arugula, and Parmesan.  And no secrets on this bottle, just fabulous wine inside!

On to the flagship, the Hertelendy Cabernet Sauvignon 2015, a blend of five Bordeaux varietals, 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 7% Malbec, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Merlot, which is the first time that valley fruit was introduced to the mountain fruit program.  Bringing extra depth and complexity to the wine, Hertelendy explained, “Oakville gives you that earthy, forest floor, truffle type of complexity layer that most of the previous vintages do not, they were more fruit-driven, more floral, so this is more old-school style.  It has not just French oak in it, it also has Hungarian oak.  For me, Hungarian oak translates to baking spice notes, cardamom, clove.”   This third vintage, Hertelendy felt, illustrated that while a single vineyard may have a lot of clout, blends of several vineyards have much more depth.  Smooth and integrated, it’s expressive nose of dark berry fruit, cassis, truffle, coffee and vanilla bean accompanies an elegant palate with fine-grained tannins.  Highly rated, it scored 96 points with Jeb Dunnuck and Wine Advocate’s Lisa Perrotti-Brown.  Paired with a Seared Duck Breast, with Orange Peel Purée and Roasted Fennel, the wine was enchanting.

Chef David Vilchez carved an amazing rack of venison

Hertelendy's first vertical of Cabernet Sauvignon

For the last course, a showstopping Rack of Venison Roast with Polenta, Honey-Glazed Carrots, and Balsamic Vinaigrette, the 2014 Hertelendy Cabernet Sauvignon was paired, offering Hertelendy’s typical style, a refined Cabernet Sauvignon blend of “bold, mountainside structure with ethereal finesse, purity, and sophistication”, a study in Napa Valley terroir.  But, surprise, Hertelendy also poured the 2013 vintage, his very first, that was more Old World, with the same five Bordeaux varietals in differing percentages, no Hungarian oak used, but good acidity and supple tannins, a fascinating vertical that demonstrated Hertelendy’s evolution as an up and coming winemaker to watch.  In fact, Robert Parker awarded that inaugural 2013 wine 95 points, a very good start.  Impressive, pure and textured wines that wow with their depth and complexity, Hertelendy’s decadently hedonistic wines can be drunk now, with proper decanting, or aged for future pleasure.

And back to that pursuit of excellence, Hertelendy said, “I have an unique relationship with wine, I translate it to music, to me it’s more like instruments, I see when it’s hitting the low notes, when it’s hitting the high notes, especially when I’m weaning barrels out of my program, I want to know if I think it’s like a tuba in an orchestra, if that will add structure, or if it will add anything to the final product, or if I should just ditch it and try to get something a little more mid-range to high-range.”  So what instruments correlate to his wines?  Chardonnay is a saxophone, the Signature Mountain Blend a violin, the Cabernet Sauvignon a grand piano.

Hertelendy is a small-scale producer, making just a little over 1,000 cases annually.  His wines are sold through his wine club, direct to consumer, and in restaurants, such as The French Laundry.  You can taste his wines at the Vintner’s Collective in downtown Napa. 

So, Egészségédre, that’s Hungarian for cheers!