A Vineyard in Bel Air

The most amazing event in the wine world in the last year was Rupert Murdoch’s acquisition of Morgana Vineyards for $29.5 million. On the surface this may not seem so incredible, leading figures from the worlds of finance, entertainment and even politics have bought vineyards before and more are sure to do so in the future. What created a media buzz is the fact that Morgana Vineyards is not your run-of-the-mill California vineyard. This because not only is it not in the Napa Valley but near Los Angeles and, what’s more, in hills of Bel Air, home to the luxury mansions of actors, directors like Steven Spielberg and multi-millionaires.

Murdoch bought the vineyard from Tom Jones, not the British singer but the ex-CEO of Northrup Corporation, the aeronautic giant that has created, among other things, the Stealth system that makes aircraft invisible to radar. Before him and his wife Ruth, who bought it in 1959, the property belonged to director Victor Fleming but the vineyards were developed by Jones. He began towards the end of the 1980s, buying up neighboring homes in Morgana Canyon and razing them to create some six hectares of land suitable for cultivating grapes. On terraced vineyards he planted mostly red grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc but he also put in some Sauvignon Blanc. All the vines were imported from Bordeaux, as is common in other areas in California. What makes this vineyards special is that it is in the Bel Air Hills, right in front of the Guggenheim Museum.

I was fortunate to visit this unusual place to produce wine a few years ago thanks to Piero Selvaggio, the famous Santa Monica restaurateur and owner of the legendary Valentino restaurant, and Steve Wallace, the equally famous owner of Wally’s wine shop in Santa Monica. I remember how we entered the estate, after being duly announced, through a giant gate in a wall high enough to keep anyone from looking in. From the outside the residence was a classic Bel Air mansion but behind it the view was spectacular, a Provencal garden and a series of vineyards each a bit less than a hectare, all terraced and all accessible by perfectly bricked walks. Jones was quite elderly and had problems getting about but still he wanted to personally inspect his vineyards, follow the ripening of the grape andoversee the harvest.
The winery began operation in 1989 with the harvest of the red grapes, while the white ones were planted later and their first harvest was not until 1998. The first enologist was Tony Soter, a historic figure in California winemaking, a consultant to the very famous Etude and nicknamed Doctor Cab due to his expertise with Cabernet. After him came Scott Rich and he was there when I visited. They must have thought I was a little weird because at the beginning I just stood there with my mouth open, looking at the marvel of everything I saw. Just a couple of miles from Rodeo Drive, the commercial heart of Beverly Hills, was this wine estate and winery that was producing wines that in the better wine shops sold for $125 a bottle. Not even the great Chateaux of Pessac, Haut-Brion first among them, could compare. This because while they may be in the suburbs southeast of Bordeaux, they are not surrounded by the mansions of billionaires and they are not situated in a metropolitan area with ten million inhabitants. The wines themselves were quite different from each other.

I have tasted Morgana Red 2007  and, more recently, 2008  and it is a wine that seems more like a Mediterranean red, something along the lines of a Bolgheri Superior like Ornellaia, which is quite logical if you consider the Californian climate. It has a very intense ruby color and a bouquet of spice, tobacco, cassis and black cherry notes. The mouthfeel is soft and warm, with just a hint of tannins that are held in check by the alcoholic content of a great southern Italian red. The 2008 vintage seemed a little less intense, due to the weather that year, but was not that much different.

Morgana Sauvignon Blanc 2010 , on the other hand, is a delicate, elegant wine in which the typical notes of the grape came out well. Thus the aromas were of exotic fruit, especially passion fruit, and jacaranda flower, which are very common in the area. Everything was consistent with what one would image a California white should be. It was as exotic as it should be, with the body it needed and both fragrant and soft. The wines are all perfect to pair with the local cuisine, the famous fusion cuisine invented by great chefs like Nobu Matsuisha, who in a small sushi bar on Venura Boulevard began his successful career. Or like Wolfgang Puck, the legendary owner of Spago and a slew of other restaurants throughout the United States. Last but not least ‘our’ Piero Selvaggio who made Valentino famous the world over.

Tom Jones ‘let go’ of his small dream for almost $30 million, an amount that may seem outrageous for just six hectares of vineyards. However, if there is one thing Murdoch knows, it is a good deal and six hectares in Bel Air are priceless. Our hope is that he will continue to produce wine and perhaps even develop a passion for it, as Tom and Ruth Jones did. It would be great if one of the leading figures of our times like him entered the small world of quality wine producers. Having a good rapport with grapes is something that keeps ones feet on the ground and this alone would help make this great entrepreneur seem a little more human.