‘Dancing Stars’

“TO GIVE BIRTH to a dancing star, one must have chaos within,” the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote. And stellar wines are what Sebastiani Vineyards is producing now, four years after a highly publicized schism in the Sebastiani family.

Under the aggressive direction of Don Sebastiani, who took over the management after his elder brother, Sam, was fired by their mother in 1986, the nation’s sixth-largest winery and No. 1 producer of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon has doubled its case production and sales, from 2.2 million cases in 1986 to 4.4 million cases at the close of the decade.

With Jim Knapp, the winery’s director of communications, I recently tasted Sebastiani’s “dancing stars” from the Sebastiani Estates Group. The collection of vineyard-designated Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon was made by wine maker Mary Sullivan with grapes from five Sonoma Valley locations.

All were beguiling. Some brief descriptions:

KINNEYBROOK 1987 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay ($13). From non-irrigated Sonoma Valley slopes, this wine is round and rich.

WILDWOOD HILL 1987 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay ($13). A vanilla-cream taste, from the full malolactic fermentation and from fully ripe grapes of September harvest. Delicate in style.

WILSON RANCH 1987 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay ($13). Bouquet suggestions of ripe pear, refined oak hints from eight months in Limousin and Nevers barrels. Needs time to reach its potential richness.

CLARK RANCH 1987 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay ($13). The most complex in taste of these wines, with anise-like fragrance beyond the butterscotch and pear bouquet. A wine of striking elegance; satin-smooth.

CHERRYBLOCK 1986 Sonoma Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($17.50). No harsh edges, fine varietal character exemplified by ripe cherry tastes, tobacco-leaf scents, chocolate-smooth texture. Ready to enjoy, but has good aging potentials.