When you’re paying a good amount for a bottle of wine, you generally expect its exterior to match what’s inside.
A well-thought-out, artful label can encourage an impulse buy and inspire discussions around the dinner table (or even on a picnic). And we all know how irresistible it can be to snap those Instagram photos, if the subject is right.
Let’s be honest — an attractive label can sometimes even make a wine taste better.
To that end, some wineries are transforming bottles into canvases of artistic expression by commissioning artists to create labels that are high-end paintings, photographs and mixed media.
But it all falls flat if the wine is not up to par.
“Caliber of wine must match caliber of art. It’s not just a pretty bottle,” notes Healdsburg fine artist, gallery owner and wine purveyor Marc Harris.
Here are three of my favorites that marry beautiful label art and beautiful wine. In fact, after finishing these wines, I’ve rinsed the bottles and placed them on a shelf of honor in my wine cellar (OK, it’s more of an oversized closet than a cellar, but it still makes me feel grand).
Love Wine
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, J Vineyards & Winery in Healdsburg has released a new sparkling Love Wine Brut Cuvée, crafted with a mix of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes from across the Russian River Valley, Monterey County and Mendocino County.
The Love Wine collection features unique labels made in collaboration with artist-philanthropist Alexandra Grant and notable female artists.
The label for the inaugural release was designed by Genevieve Gaignard, a New York-based interdisciplinary artist known for encouraging dialogue around class, race and cultural identity.
“Wine, like art, has the power to bring people together, spark conversation and inspire change,” said Nicole Hitchcock, J Vineyards’ estate director and head winemaker.
With its dry, crisp character, Love ($50) is rich in fruit notes of raspberry, strawberry and cherry, smoothed with crème brûlée and a hint of citrus.
The sparkling Brut Cuvée is included in several J Vineyards’ tastings — at the Signature Bar for a casual sampling of five wines in a mix of still and sparkling ($35); or in the Legacy Lounge for five sparklings, or your choice of mixed sparkling and still ($50).
Or you can amp things up in the Bubble Room for a lavish five-course wine-paired meal that stretches two hours ($175).
My favorite experience, in the Legacy Lounge, pairs five sparklings (or your choice of mixed sparkling and still) with a platter of California and Italian cheeses ($30). And then I add in the brand new pairing that brings an additional two glasses of Love paired with a delightful housemade white sesame-lemon curd ice cream sandwich ($45).
If you’re taken with Gaignard’s whimsical, colorful label design, you can purchase themed tchotchkes, such as Love logo jewelry, at the winery’s pop-up through March. Part of your purchase supports artist Grant’s grantLOVE foundation.
11447 Old Redwood Highway, Healdsburg, 888-594-6326, jwine.com
Elaine Wines Russian River
I came across this boutique winery at an event during the three-day Sonoma County Wine Celebration in September. I stopped in my tracks when I saw the label — the screen print hugging the glass bottles is fascinating, in flowing abstract that reminds me a bit of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock print.
Just as remarkable — the intricate design was created by winery owners Elaine and Mark Sale’s then 14-year-old son, Matt. He drew the art by hand in 2012 using an extra fine point Sharpie on paper, and the illustration does look like the couple’s rugged hillside Calypte Vineyard.
“Coincidentally, the vineyard was planted in 1998, the same year Matt was born. But Mark and I did not even buy our Forestville property until 2013,” Elaine said. “Matt had not seen it.”
Elaine explained that the Sales are a family of scuba divers, and Matt had just completed his Open Water Diver certification when he decided to create his design.
“I see ocean creatures when I look at the illustration,” Elaine said. “However, Matt does not recall any particular inspiration for the art, other than the Zentangle method of drawing.”
If you look closely at the label, you will see Matt’s initials and a date (’12 for 2012 on the lower part). The artist turned 27 on Feb. 12 and is now an aerospace engineer.
The family still focuses on their Russian River Valley wine, in extremely limited production. I tasted the 2018 Chardonnay that brims with apple, pear and apricot, underlaid with caramel notes from 16 months aging in 50% new French oak (45 cases, $50).
I also sampled the 2021 Pinot Noir that shows wonderfully with rhubarb, dark cherry, spice and violet (112 cases, $50).
Tastings are led personally by Elaine, by appointment. Or you can check the winery website event list for walk-in tastings, such as the next complimentary open house on March 1 at the micro-winery where Elaine and other winemakers make their products (11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Inspiration Winery, 3360 Coffey Lane, Suite E, Santa Rosa).
Note: If you purchase three bottles of any wine in February, you’ll get a four-piece box of lovely artisan chocolates from Fleur Sauvage in Windsor.
919-599-0982, elainewines.com
The Harris Gallery Art & Wine Collection
You can tell one of the co-owners here is an artist, as he prefers to go by the name A3L3XZAND3R. His father is also a renowned artist, Marc Cabell “M.C.” Harris, and the two work together on creating world-class paintings for their Healdsburg gallery.
Some of their modernist, cubist, abstract and impressionist paintings are showcased across their portfolio of six varietals and 18 labels (each wine features multiple label options with art from both resident artists, so the bottles themselves become collectors’ items).
Resident Winemaker, aka “wineartist,” Wells Guthrie specializes in Burgundian-style Pinot Noirs, including a single vineyard standout from the Klindt Vineyard in Anderson Valley. The 2021 vintage is a mélange of seven different clones and a splash of Pinot Gris from the same vineyard. The result is rich and plush but also light and floral, extra-appealing with its 13.5% alcohol by volume (56 cases, $65).
Consulting winemaker Leo Hansen, best known for his Leo Steen brand, also crafts a Dry Creek Valley Chenin Blanc for the Harris family ($35). The Harris Chenin Blanc is a showstopper, bone dry with vibrant acidity amid layers of orange blossom, chamomile, jasmine and citrus.
Taste wines at the gallery, or check online for local restaurants that serve Harris wines: theharrisgallery.com/copy-of-partners.
320 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, 707-385-1888, theharrisgallery.com