Rhône Rangers, loose affiliation of American wine producers who, led by Californians Bob Lindquist of Qupé winery and Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon, decided in the 1980s to produce wines in the image of the reds and, increasingly, whites of the rhône valley in France. Such wines provided a useful outlet for the produce of old grenache and Mataro (mourvèdre) vines which had previously languished out of favour. It also resulted in a dramatic increase in plantings of such vine varieties as syrah (whose total California plantings grew from 2,000 acres/800 ha prior to 1995 to over 19,000 acres/7,700 ha in 2012) and viognier (500 acres/200 ha prior to 1995; 3,000 acres/1,214 ha in 2012). Joseph Phelps of napa was an early exponent, Bonny Doon of santa cruz a later but noisier one. The movement was regarded by some as providing welcome alternatives to the usual California diet of unblended Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Chardonnay, by others as an act of treachery against the state’s own wine styles and vine varieties (petite sirah was only gradually accepted into the Rhône Rangers’ blending vats).
