Oh yes and about those grilled peaches.

Brush them with some veg oil, grille for a couple mins til you get the scorch marks, put a dollop of creme fraiche in the middle and then take a fork and dip it in molasses and drizzle on top. Heavenly

i live in marina, which is in monterey county. from what randall said in the first part off the interview was all true. with all of the fog, and salty air. i never knew we grew grapes in the salinas valley. i knew about monterey, carmel and santa cruz. might go check that out.

qotd: I haven’t had any wine from Bonny Doone in years and now after hearing Mr. Graham tell his story (that is when you GV let him get a word in edgewise) and talk about the vineyard I was very intrigued. I guess I’ll give them another go.

Pssst Gary…Move the wine bottles from in front of your guest’s face. It’s impolite to leave them there! Just my humble opinion…

QOTD: BD and Randall (specifically) were cutting edge winemakers that really brought a lot of innovation to the wine industry. This was my impression when I first moved to California in 1996. Shortly thereafter, my impression slowly changed to considering BD and Randall (as he said in the video) as a slick marketing machine that focused less on the quality of the wine, and more on the packaging. Also, the quality of the wines was diminishing.

Then, I didn’t think about BD or Randall at all until I watched this video. I have a 180 degree turn based on these two videos and am eager to try these wines again!

I want to thank Gary and Randall for these two videos! Very worthwhile!

-Joe

Excellent interview.

QOTD: I’ve actually never had a Bonny Doon wine and I don’t really have a formed opinion yet either way.

Very interesting show, Randall seems to be a very down-to-earth guy and passionate about his wines. Love that. QOTD: I had heard of Bonny Doon before, but didn’t have an opinion, didn’t know anything about the company, and never thought I’d had any of their wines. But… I have had the Big House Red several times over the years and immediately recognized the Ca Del Solo name as the name that used to be on those bottles. Interesting coincidence that the last time I had it, I found the winery to be something else, and I thought I was losing my mind! Anyway, my opinion of Bonny Doon has now been formed, and I will keep them on my radar when shopping for wine.

Thanks for the free wristband and sticker.

QOTD: Not familiar with this guy or his wine until now.

Disclaimer: I’ve posted maybe 50 times – never said anything negative about Gary (’cause I love).
GARY, SHUT THE $#^& UP when you have a Randall Graham on your show and let the guy talk. I was hanging on his every word & you stepped on him again and again. Lord in Heaven! You have a wine ICON on your show, let him do some of the work – I for one would appreciate that.

QOTD: I had taken a break from Bonny Doon wines for the very reason Randall probably feared – I saw the brand as more flash than substance. After watching these episodes, I see maybe I was wrong. One way to find out!

QOTD: I love Bonny Doon wines. Love all the varietals you can find with them. 95% of the wines I drink are imports, mostly French. Why? Because I like to try all kins of styles and varietals. I’m sick and tired of going into a wine store and seeing miles and miles of rows of California Cab, Pinot and Chardonnay! Think Mr. Graham is a modern day pioneer in the California wine industry. Great job Randall!!!!!!!!!!! Like the labels too and the humor. Better than putting a freaking cute little animal on it to get people to buy it!

GV, I got your back. Randall Grahm is big time and I can empathize with you trying to impress. Especially if you had never had the last 2 wines and you are trying to gain his respect in ID’ing the profiles while still being objective, with 10,000 people watching!

Great, great episodes. I came home exhausted late last night and saw Randall was on and had to watch it even though the first episode was 30 minutes.

?OTD: I came into the wine world a bit backwards in that I have been reading everything I had gotten my hands on about history, growing regions, marketing, etc., without doing a great deal of actual tasting. The authors I have read simply gush about Randall and his place in American wine history. How he is a man of high ideals and integrity. Then when I actually started shopping wines and noticed the Big House I thought I was confusing his wine with something else. I couldn’t believe this was the same person I had read about so I did not have a clear understanding of how these two perceptions could co-exist.

Now I understand this better after listening to his responses and reading everyone’s comments cemented it for me. Somewhere along the way after pioneering the “noticeable by being slightly obnoxious” branding technique, it caught on like wildfire and everyone went for their own obnoxious labels. Now memorable labels actually work against the wines, that’s what I have noticed that turns me off as well. Great decision to spin off those brands and focus on that original impression that he has earned.

I don’t know if Randall is a baseball fan, but I see a little Billy Beane in him! Moneygrape!

Great show and great guest. Really appreciated understanding the influence behind the wines. I will look for them on my seller’s shelves. I was not under the impression that BD was making “soulful” wines prior to this airing (neophyte?). Soulful is what it is all about–to me the antithesis of Mr. Rolland. Thanks for mixing it up a bit.

QOTD: Definitely understand that you guys are really committed.
Great episode(s)!

QOTD: Until yesterday’s episode I thought that Bonny Doon was a pioneer wine producer devoted to quality winemaking with a slightly crazy but genius owner/winemaker. BUT I thought that it had been sold and all that remained was the remnants of an advertising-driven company with flashy labels which no longer possessed the vision and expertise to continue to make quality wine… I was wrong.

I’ve read most of the comments and agree that Randall Grahm is one of the more interesting and soulful guests that you’ve had, your interaction with him may have been interrupting on occasion but its you, DO NOT CHANGE. I would say that parking the bottles in front of Randall’s face was a mistake and made it hard to get all that he was saying (most times facial expression is important). Just a thought Randall – its 2008, haircut? We get your heritage. Love the screw-cap pioneering.

QOTD
BD wines have never been on my radar because of the quirky labels. Rarely have I found that the label reflects the wine but when a winemaker has to resort to oddity there’s usually a reason, you are looking for a buyer who is point of purchase foolish. I will try the Syrah (if I can find it in Orlando) as a result of the episodes.

QOTD: I have always thought of Bonny Doon wines as “a little flashy” with the labels and the wines that I have tried…I thought of them as another mass produced California wine. I have not tried your wines in about two years as I have found myself drawn more & more to Oregon, Italy, Germany, and France lately…

However, I feel that a large part of wine is having some sort of personal connection. While the idea behind your labels is attractive to me as a fan of artisitic expression…I think that a visit to the winery might change my current thoughts on your wine. Randall…do you travel to every state that you distribute your wines to? Is it important to get out and meet the people that sell your wines in retail and restaurants?

QOTD~ I was first turned on to BD when Big House Red was released back in the early 90’s; it was a serious wine at an un-seriousness price. I had a few other favorites along the way inducing Framboise, Pacific Rim Dry Riesling and Cigar Volant. It seems as though you lost your way three years ago and started resting on the marketing/profit vs. releasing great wine. I’m happy to see you are in the processing on ‘downsizing’ and concentrating on what you do best.

GV – really liked the show – can’t seem to find part 1. Good guest – down to earth!
QOTD – I really thought that Bonny Doon was not a very serious wine making company. It seemed more about cool marketing. Seeing GV drool over the Syrah may change my mind. I need to try some of the BD serious wines.

Bonny Doon’s image is one of never living up to the reviews it receives. Hopefully with the new change in place (making serious wines as a mission)They will be a great house of wine. Great show by the way.

Well, maybe this shows how new to wine I am, but I’ve never heard of Bonny Doone before tonight. I was completey impressed and after seeing Randall’s depth and insight, feel it’ll be a wine I’ll be looking out for while on my travels. It’s great when you have these types of guests!

What I thought was similar to many other comments. BD was a lot of mkt’ing and not much else. Didn’t think about BD at all for several yrs. Went to a tasting several months ago, loved the wines but why did you go w/ such a small distributor. Another account to open. Hate to buy just one wine from a distributor. waste of time for us and them.
ps-Randall, love your columns in FINE WINE mag. Gary-oddly I’ve been trying lots of Syrah these days. Shows are dead on.

Not only do you hide Randall’s face with the bottles, but you hide his voice by talking over him.

Gary, please STFU and let your guest speak.

Gary,

Your shows with Randall Grahm were THE most aggravating of all your shows. You had me screaming “SHUT UP and let him talk!” many times during the two episodes. I think you were irritating him too.

I like your shows, but in the future, please allow your guests to answer your questions. Especially people who have as much to say as Mr. Grahm.

I hope you have him back sometime and you should just sit there with a sock in your mouth and write your questions to him on your blackboard.

QOTD: I always thought Bonny Doon was a serious winery, ever since I tried Flying Saucer red in 1986. Cutting edge, always different.

Thanks for this Gary. Randall sort of reminded me of Wilson from Home Improvement behind those bottles. 🙂