Interview with Francis Ford Coppola

Posted on | December 3, 2006

Recently we published our first issue of Fine Wine. It contained an interview with Francis Coppola which I conducted specially for the magazine and I thought if you’re an avid blog reader and hadn’t seen a copy of the magazine then you might like to read it here. I asked him about his early days and his willingness to risk all in order to complete one of his most successful and popular films, Apocalypse Now….

Fine Wine: When you first bought part of the Niebaum estate in California back in 1975, had you intended to make a world-class wine?

Francis Coppola: Not initially – I was just looking for a little weekend cottage with a couple of acres of grapes, where I could make some wine by the foot method and pretend I was my grandfather. However, as I learned more about the estate, its history and its importance in the wine world, I knew that it was like a family that inherits a great racehorse – you have to race it. I knew I had to make wine, and that the wine needed to carry on the great reputation of the estate.

Did the first bottle of wine that you made match your expectations?

Well, the first bottles we made were by the foot method and weren’t sold. We were still selling most of our grapes to our neighbours, who were only too happy to pay top dollar. But for the 1978 vintage, I borrowed some money from my mother and bought some winemaking equipment and hired a winemaker and consultant, and we began. We didn’t release that wine until seven years later, so the whole operation was quite a secret for a long while. I still drink those early wines, and they have aged and developed very well. Of those very early vintages, I think the 1979 is still my favourite.

You have often been “accused” of taking risks. For some reason the questions appear accusatory. But your decision to mortgage your wine estate to pay for Apocalypse Now – in your own words your “idiodyssey” – seemed extraordinary to many outside of the film business. Does this reveal where your priorities lie?

No, it reveals that I had no intention of letting a studio take control of that film, and it was the right decision. The things you are criticised for are often the very things that you are lauded for later in your career – at least that has been my experience. We were worried that we would lose the estate, since we had process servers up and down the driveway. But we didn’t, and the film was made as I intended. If you never take the risk, you never get the reward.

You have shown in your films – particularly The Godfather – how much you believe in origins, and you often evoke a very strong sense of place. Is that, in part, what attracts you to winemaking – the concept of terroir?

I am a big history buff, so the history and authenticity of Rubicon Estate is very important to me. In fact, I was studying Roman history when I named our flagship wine, which is now also the name of our estate. Our Cabernet Sauvignon is a heritage clone that was brought from France by Captain Gustav Niebaum, the original owner of the property. Rubicon Estate sits on the Rutherford Bench in Napa, which is prime Cabernet Sauvignon land, so we have not only terroir but history and a unique (and this is a word I rarely use) clone.

Fine California wine is still not much consumed outside of the United States. For someone who does not know your wines, how would you describe them in the context of the finest wines from France and Italy?

Our weather in California is very different from that in France and Italy – we rarely have late frosts or rain during harvest. I’ve often compared Rubicon to a St-Julien; however, I think that was truer in the earlier vintages than it is now. Our model is Bordeaux, of course, and Rubicon is a Bordeaux blend, with the majority of the blend being Cabernet Sauvignon. Every year we taste it against the first growths of Bordeaux and some of our neighbours’ wines. We do this with top sommeliers and retailers across the country and do it blind. Often Rubicon is the top wine of the tasting, other times it may be one of the first growths. What is important to me is that this is one of America’s first growths.

Obviously marketing and packaging are key areas in the development of any winery. Sofia Mini, introduced in 2004, represents a very modern approach to winemaking. “It was the most successful and significant product launch we’ve ever had,” your winemaker was quoted as saying at the time. Sofia Mini is 187ml of Blanc de Blancs sparkling wine packaged in a pink can. It’s been suggested you produce 50,000 or more 24-can cases of this wine each year. In your view, does this detract at all from your image of being a premium wine producer?

We purchased a winery in Sonoma County in March 2006. All my “crazy ideas” and innovations will be launched from that winery. Rubicon Estate will
only produce wines from our 235 acres of certified organically grown grapes.

What or who has been the greatest influence on your life as a wine producer?

Robert Mondavi. He welcomed us to the Valley and we tasted a very old Inglenook that had been left in the cellar. It was from the 1800s, and when we pulled the cork, the aroma filled the room. Bob practically jumped up and down, saying, ”See, a California wine can age.” After that, I knew that I had to make wine from the estate, and he encouraged me. In fact, he was the only person who didn’t think I was crazy to want to make a Bordeaux blend when everyone else said it should be 100 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon.

What has winemaking taught you?

It has brought me close to the cycles of nature, since we live with vines practically outside our back door. We consider ourselves stewards of this property, and we farm our grapes organically. Winemaking takes patience. It’s a little bit like trying to win the America’s Cup [the yacht race]: you invest hundreds of thousands of dollars to shave a few seconds off your time. In winemaking, you invest thousands in barrels or winemaking equipment or replanting to make a small (but important) increase in the final quality.

Note:
Francis Ford Coppola and his wife Eleanor first acquired the former Inglenook Estate in 1975. They renamed the estate Niebaum-Coppola and in 1978 produced the first vintage of Rubicon, a proprietary Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. It wasn’t until 1995, following the box-office success of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, that they were able to acquire the balance of the original estate and the impressive château of Inglenook, one of the oldest and most historic properties in the Napa Valley, California. The couple then started the process of transforming the house and vineyards, culminating in a new name for the estate earlier in 2006: the Rubicon Estate. There are some 235 acres of vineyards planted, mainly growing Cabernet Sauvignon, with some Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, and the estate has been certified organic by the CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers) and under federal statute by the Department of Food and Agriculture.

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