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01.31.2008

2006 Orin Swift Cellars "The Prisoner" Red Wine, Napa

I wish I knew how many wineries in Napa started as "just a guy who decided he wanted to make wine one day." There must be dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. These numbers shouldn't be allowed to devalue the effort and vision it takes to create a successful winery, but sometimes I scratch my head in bemusement at the audacity of so many people who simply decide to throw their lives into the wine business. While we don't really hear about the ones that don't make it, there are enough of them that have become wildly successful that "the guy with the dream" is a well established cliché at this point in the history of wine.

Dave Phinney was one of those guys, and his ascendency to the proprietorship of one of Napa's great success stories is a textbook case of seeing where his nose led him.

Mid way through his college career, and after a somewhat disheartening summer internship as a congressional aide, Phinney began trying to think about what to do with the rest of his life. At the time, he was studying abroad in Florence, and his roommate at the time apparently came from an old wine family in Sonoma County. At a certain point, the roommate suggested that perhaps Phinney could take his personal love of wine and turn it into something more, and apparently, that was that.

Or at least, that was the idea. The first thing Phinney had to do was figure out how he was going to get from the middle of nowhere (at least as far as wine country is concerned) Arizona to some place more conducive to growing grapes. Not content to simply relax once he had made the decision, Phinney apparently spent his last two years of college working in a wine store and, while he wasn't at work or in class, trying to convince a professor in the Agriculture department to let him mess with the one-acre plot of experimental vineyards that the university had recently planted.

Once he escaped the desert to more Mediterranean climes, Phinney threw himself into the wine business with an abandon that seems common to those trying to break into any major business. While there are lots of different roads to success, in the wine business, like the film business or the advertising business (to just name a few comparable industries) no matter what other options exist, there is always the option of starting at the rock bottom and climbing your way to the top. For the wine business, and for Phinney in this case, that meant being the only sweaty white guy on a team of Mexican vineyard workers.

Apparently there's nothing like starting with the hardest, dirtiest, and most thankless part of the business to teach you how things work. By the end of his first year as an intern at Robert Mondavi winery, Phinney had figured out how to get his hands on two tons of Zinfandel grapes, and Orin Swift Cellars was born.

A combination of elements from his parent's names, Orin Swift Cellars sounds like it's the life's work of a master winemaker. That's about right, except the winemaker's name is Dave (there is no Orin Swift) and he is only in his 7th vintage.

I've watched the evolution of Orin Swift Cellars for the past four years with amazement and admiration. The path from that first couple of tons of Zinfandel to an emerging iconic brand in the matter of seven or so years is truly phenomenal. When I first encountered The Prisoner, the wine that evolved from Phinney's early obsession with Zinfandel, it was a cute little boutique project that had a catchy name and a cool label. Now it is the centerpiece of a 20,000 case production portfolio of wines, and ended up as #17 on last years Wine Spectator Top 100 list of wines (for the 2005 vintage). Phinney has recently purchased nearly 50 acres in Soda Canyon, above the Oakville appellation of Napa Valley. The word juggernaut comes to mind, yet the winery is anything but. Phinney only recently quit his day job to run the winery full time.

This wine, with its eccentric blend of Zinfandel (51%), Cabernet Sauvignon (23%), Syrah (12%), Petite Sirah (6%), Charbono (6%) and Grenache (2%) defies the logic of most wine blends, and would scandalize the wine appellation police in many countries. But there's not a lot about Orin Swift Cellars that really seems intent on following accepted practices when it comes to wine. I don't know much about the winemaking for the wine, or the specific vineyard sources for the grapes, which Phinney doesn't disclose. The blend changes a little bit each year but generally keeps to the same flavor profile that has made the wine a raging success among its enthusiastic fans (I've reviewed only one vintage of the wine previously and it is still one of the most often searched for wines on Vinography).

No matter how many times you see a heck of a lot of work pay off in the service of a dream, it's still quite impressive.

Tasting Notes:
Medium to dark garnet in color, this wine has a strong, jammy bouquet of blackberries and espresso that with a little air open to include semi-sweet chocolate. On the tongue it is smooth, and reasonably well balanced with a decent acidity that rides on the waves of fruit that the wine offers: blackberry, plum, chocolate, and a touch of savory leather. The finish is moderate and brings in elements of spice (cardamom?) that give an extra kick to the wine along with the barest hint of dry tannins. While perhaps not as complex as it might be, the wine achieves lush fruit without utter bombast, making it worth hanging out with for as long as the bottle lasts.

Food Pairing:
This is a great candidate for grilled meats of all kinds, especially those that contain more complex spices, like these grilled spiced lamb chops with cucumber mint sauce.

Overall Score: 9

How Much?: $35

This wine is available for purchase on the internet.

Posted by: Alder on January 31, 2008 11:19 PM: Filed under: Red Wine , Wine Reviews; Like this post? Share it! Digg it! - Add to del.icio.us - Add to Stumbleupon - Add to Reddit

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» Vinography Posts The Prisoner from So Good: Food

Tracked on February 4, 2008 12:31 PM

Alder Yarrow of Vinography, the outstanding blog out of San Francisco, recently posted an entry about the wine I pour with my newly retitled Giant's Superbowl Chili Video. (New York, New York!) It's a big, bold, blend called The Prisoner Read more

Comments (12)

Ron wrote:

02.01.08 at 10:10 AM

It is always good to hear the story of under dog makes good. We get enough negative fed to us daily. This is living proof that sometimes what you dream can come true.....of course there is always going back to your.......9-5 and everything that gets you. Great blog and good for Phinney

Julian wrote:

02.01.08 at 10:22 AM

Just tried a bottle of this recently - what a great wine!

Remy Charest wrote:

02.01.08 at 12:44 PM

The Prisoner is a fantastic wine, indeed. A rare occasion where such an unusual blend comes together in such a convergent way. I've loved it so much that I've collaborated in importing it in Quebec.

Orin Swift's sauvignon blanc, Veladora, is also exceptional, with a great balance and freshness I've rarely seen in the varietal's Californian incarnations.

Brian wrote:

02.03.08 at 11:39 AM

I liked the 2006. The 2005 was too sweet, though. Have you tried their monster Cab, the Merus?

Mark V Marino wrote:

02.03.08 at 1:11 PM

Hi Alder,
I first heard about this from a client that owns Organic Spa Magazine in New York, New York. She was out here to do a piece on the Gaige House out in Glen Ellen. I got into a conversation with her on wine and she wanted names of Organic growers which of course I know a bunch. She was very impressed and said something like well I bet you don't know where to get, "The Prisioner"! I said as a matter of fact I do not but I will find out. I went home did some searches and came up with Orin Swift and two wines, the Prisoner" and "The Mercury Head Dime" his Cabernet. I was pleased with myself and added this place to by huge winery list for Napa and Sonoma.
Funny part is I have yet to taste the wine!

karenp wrote:

02.04.08 at 11:37 AM

My boyfriend just bought the '06 as an addition to the Prisoner vertical he started in '02. We love the stuff and our biggest disappointment is the price inflation that inevitably comes with increased demand (even at 20k cases).

karenp wrote:

02.04.08 at 11:38 AM

karenp wrote:

02.04.08 at 3:33 PM

Dale Cruse wrote:

02.04.08 at 6:26 PM

I keep seeing The Prisoner at my favorite little local wine shop. Now I'll have to pick some up.

offthemeathook wrote:

02.07.08 at 10:22 PM

I am drinking this right now and it is always worth it... even though I usually opt for cheaper wine. Love every year I've tasted!

Dave Zirretta wrote:

03.02.08 at 5:51 AM

Great wine. Can serve is up casually, or at a formal dinner. Nice blending, interesting depth and charcter. Nice work Dave Phinney. Dinner with Friends at Linwood, adn 2 bottles later, the nice I am on line trying to learn more. We found the wine by accidentially.

JD wrote:

06.12.08 at 10:36 AM

I haven't tried the 05, but the 06 was way too sweet and the high alcohol content seemed to cause a medicine type taste. I was sorely disappointed. There are plenty better wines out there in that price range. Nonetheless, Dave Phinney is a Univ of Arizona guy, so he has that going for him... Go Cats!