Tasting the 2010's at Brewer-Clifton

I'm a fan of Greg Brewer's wines at Melville and Brewer-Clifton. So the lineup of new 2010's and a few older wines being poured at Brewer-Clifton's tasting room for Santa Barbara Vintners' Fest weekend was right up my alley.

If you're not already familiar, Brewer-Clifton makes single vineyard Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from vineyards throughout Sta. Rita Hills. They control 100% of the fruit from four vineyards- 3-D, Gnesa, Machado and Mount Carmel; while sourcing from many others. The winemaking centers around perfectly ripe fruit maintaining good acidity, adding depth and texture on the Pinot Noir through whole-cluster fermentation. Each wine is fermented and aged identically with aging in neutral French oak. All of this is meant to showcase the individual characteristics of the vineyards, and the common elements of the AVA as a whole.

Overall this lineup was most impressive from the Mount Carmel and Ampelos vineyards. The best of the Pinot Noir tended to maintain a softness and elegance in the face of darker ripe fruit and earthiness. Others were impressive with ripe fruit and presence while falling short of that ideal elegance and texture. The best Chardonnays had a dense complexity to go along with the racy acid, suggesting some life ahead. All of the wines were very enjoyable.

All of my notes are below. The appellation wines retail for $30-$36 and the single vineyard wines retail for $46-$56. Information about the vintages and production of the wines is available from the Brewer-Clifton website. If you're interested in this producer or this region I hope you find this useful~

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Pinot Noir Ampelos, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Alluring aromas of floral, earth, clove and delicate red fruit- very pretty. Deft on the palate with structured acid and fine tannins- great presence and complexity. Very present flavors of earth and spice, but the fruit is focused and pure. Long open finish with mineral and floral influence. (Rating- I love!)

Brewer-Clifton 2009 Pinot Noir Mt. Carmel, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Smokey earth and dark fruit on the bouquet. Pure and silky on the palate adding elements of spice and slate and dried herb to the earth and fruit. Fine firm tannins and a full spice-laden finish. (Rating- I like+!)

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Pinot Noir Machado, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Dense aromas of earth, violet, plum & dark cherry. The palate shows nice acid and a delicate sensibility. Very nuanced mix of ripe fruit, spice, earth and floral flavors. Polished fine structure and a full open finish. (Rating- I like+!)

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Full aromas of tart cherry and dried fruitcake. The palate brings spice and some balance to the dark ripe cherry flavors. Round and ripe and full with fine polished tannins and a pleasant bitterness on the finish. (Rating- I like!)

Brewer-Clifton 2008 Chardonnay Mt. Carmel, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Aromas of vanilla and cream with tropical and citrus fruit. Full tangy lime fruit with mineral, honey and spice. Round and opulent feel with medium weight. Balanced acid structure and a full finish. (Rating- I like+!)

Brewer-Clifton 2009 Chardonnay Mt. Carmel, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. The complexity starts on the bouquet- lactic frommage aromas with honey, white-floral, lychee & stone fruit. Dense and smooth on the palate with great complexity and balance. Layers of fruit, mineral, spice and floral flavors. Nice presence and weight with a pleasing tangy gripping finish. (Rating- I love!)

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Chardonnay Sea Smoke, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Aromas of honeycomb, spice, lychee & kiwi. Opens on the palate with vibrant mineral notes and lime/tropical fruit. Hints of floral dried herb and eastern spice. Opulent roundness is balanced with acid. Full opulent finish with tinges of slate-mineral. (Rating- I like!)

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Chardonnay Gnesa, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Begins on the bouquet with honey, straw, white-floral and stone fruit. Tightly wound stone fruit and lime with hints of vanilla and tangy minerality. Drinks elegantly with smoothness and round feel. Lingering finish. (Rating- I like+!)

Brewer-Clifton 2010 Chardonnay, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasting room pour- 4/20. Citrus and tropical aromas- banana & kiwi with hints of dried herb and clove. Grassy tropical fruit and lime on the palate- very bright with some opulence. Mineral notes add to the finish along with lingering fruit. (Rating- I like!)

Oh how I've missed you

In my past life I worked for a wine distributor. There's plenty not to miss- namely participating in the evils of the three tier system, schlepping wine in the hot summer, unrealistic quotas on wines that customers don't want, and crazy bosses (and buyers). What I have missed is the variety of wines that I was able to taste- most specifically Italian wines.

I'd been craving Sangiovese and was able to fill the void with a nice little Chianti Classico on the wine list at Cecco in Solvang CA. At $10 by-the-glass and $32 by-the-bottle it looked like the perfect dinner companion.

Principe Corsini Le Corti 2007 Chianti Classico comes from Corsini's Villa Le Corti hillside vineyards in Chianti Classico; 95% Sangiovese and 5% Canaiolo from alluvial and rocky soils. Fermentation begins with selected indigenous yeasts and the wine is aged 12 months in cement tanks and large wood casks prior to bottling.


Upon opening, the wine had an aggressive earthiness and angular acidity, but there was enough fruit to suggest that the wine would come together. With a little air and the wonderful vibrant flavors of the food, the fruit really came to fore and very pleasantly rounded out the wine. It showed nice structure with balanced flavors and fine tannins. It was a very nice Chianti Classico that was well-priced and well-chosen for the list. 


I'd rate this is a solid (I like!) with extra consideration for value (retails between $15 and $20). 

Catching up with 2002 Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon

The notes on their website for the 2002 Jordan Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon proclaim the vintage as the decade's best while also comparing the wine to Left-Bank Bordeaux. I decided to test my 2002 out this past weekend to see how the wine was drinking as it nears ten years of age.

Jordan of course is known for being a hugely popular brand in restaurants and retail, and also for their epic chateau and hospitality. What gets lost in all the panache is how balanced and elegant (and consistently good!) their two wines (Alexander Valley and Russian River Chardonnay) are vintage after vintage. The Chardonnay at around $25-$30 and the Cabernet at around $40-$50 are always very solid buys, especially when you find a retailer discounting them.

What's also sometimes lost is Jordan's intrinsic link to the history of California wine. Jordan was a pioneering winery in the Alexander Valley AVA. André Tchelistcheff, the legendary and seminal figure in California wine, was Jordan's consulting enologist. Tchelistcheff hired Rob Davis as winemaker in 1972, who is still the winemaker today.

The 2002 is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon and 23% Merlot with splashes of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. It  was aged in barrel (65% French and 35% American oak) for 12 months with an additional 3 months in large American oak tanks, before an additional 17 months in bottle before release. The grapes come from Jordan's Alexander Valley estate as well as select Alexander Valley growers.

The notes come after a three hour decant- Full dark ruby color lightening at its edges. Kicks off with notes of currant, cassis, cedar & spice that carry though to the palate. Finely structured with medium weight. Layered fruit flavors with cedar/spice oak notes that open up a bit with air. Balanced and nuanced. Fine round tannins still holding. Medium finish. Still going strong. (rating- I like+!)

I think the wine is in a peak phase and can hold for several more years. It was equally strong on day two. To the website's point on the Left Bank Bordeaux comparison- it was similar in flavor and structure to the 2005 Clos Du Marquis that I opened a week prior- both very enjoyable!

Mowing and tilling and cover crops

White Rock Vineyards- organically farmed in Napa Valley. April 2010

Ever wonder why some vineyards mow the cover crops in their rows so closely in Spring? Or why some don't? Or only mow every other row? Or why some vineyards don't appear to have cover crops at all? Since moving to a wine-growing area, these are the types of questions that pop up in my head on a regular basis. 

The answer to the first question is well-covered in the blog for Amapola Creek Vineyards in Sonoma Valley. Their post last month on flail mowing in the vineyards does a great job in explaining how the mowing of cover crops in the rows just before bud break reduces the vines' competition for water. Their vineyards are organically farmed so the root network tends to be more spread out beneath the surface, and the cover crops can more easily affect their access to water. The mowed crops can also be a natural fertilizer. Furthermore mowing the cover crops closely in Spring can protect the vines from spring frost by allowing cold air to circulate near the ground rather than around the vine.

As to why every other row may contain a longer cover crop- the answers could be from providing space in the alternate rows to toss vines during winter pruning. They could then be mulched to provide nutrients to the soil. A good explanation of this process can be found at the StillwaterVineyards blog. It could also be a matter of two different cover cropping systems on alternate rows.

More and more vineyards are converting over to cover crops and minimal tilling of the soil as vineyard practices become more sustainable. Tilling reduces the vine’s competition for water and nutrients, and helps a new vineyard establish its roots. On the flipside it affects the structure of the soil and intervenes in the ecosystem of the vineyard.  Most of the vineyards that I see in the Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Ynez Valley are using a system of cover crops, although I saw a newly tilled vineyard the other day that piqued my thoughts on the subject.

I’ve highlighted links to information that I found useful. I’m just scratching the surface in the most general terms- I encourage any comments and/or clarifications. This is one of those subjects where questions and information begets more questions… Cheers!

Killing a 2005 Bordeaux

I have a few 2005 Bordeaux bottles laying around waiting for that magical day in the future when they truly are ready to be opened. I made that stash a little leaner this weekend by cracking open a 2005 Clos Du Marquis. It had been too long since indulging on a nice Bordeaux- I couldn't help myself.

Clos Du Marquis is a second wine of one of Saint-Julien's top chateaux, the "Super" Second Growth Château Léoville-Las Cases. Léoville-Las Cases rivals the left bank First Growths in acclaim; a dream wine for me to be sure. They were one of the first Chateaux to produce a second wine. First produced in 1902, Clos Du Marquis is made from a completely separate parcel of vineyards that is surrounded on all sides by other Second Growths. The blend is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with a little higher percentage of Merlot than in the Grand Vin. There are also small percentages of Petit Verdot and Cab Franc.

I opened and decanted and started drinking the wine with dinner at about the three hour mark. It was tight initially but quickly opened. By hour four through the rest of the evening it was an open and giving wine with balance and elegance and a fine but firm structure. Still very youthful, but definitely making the experience of opening early worthwhile. It was definitely true to the appellation of Saint-Julien's balance of grace and power.

My notes- Clos Du Marquis 2005 Saint-Julien- Four hour decant. Dense medium garnet in color. Layered bouquet with notes of violets, crushed stone, cassis & blueberry. Very fine and polished on the palate- initially tight but started to open up after the third hour. The flavors were mostly consistent with the bouquet- elegant pure fruit and savory floral & mineral depth. Oak is well integrated with just hints of cocoa. Fine opulent tannins and full finishing notes of blue & black fruit. (Rating- I like++!) Give this 5-8 years and it will move firmly into "I love!" territory. $50-$60.