Tasting highlights- Garagiste Festival, Southern Exposure

Southern Exposure, the Garagiste Festival previewed last month, was an exciting and eclectic mix of Santa Barbara County wineries. Ranging from the small and well-known to the smaller and more obscure, the festival grand tasting provided a one-stop shop opportunity for exposure to new Santa Barbara wineries and vineyards.

Among the new and interesting favorites were Altman Winery. The winery is so small that the website is a Wordpress blog and I had to manually input the wines on Cellartracker. Proprietor Mike Altman produces a pleasant and inexpensive Santa Ynez Valley Chardonnay and Rosé, but what really shined was a pair of Petite Sirahs from the Sunset Ridge vineyard in Paso Robles. Both the 2008 and 2009 Altman Petite Sirah Sunset Ridge showed bright wild blue fruit, violet, and tangy mineral notes - with the 2009 adding firm complexity to the structure.

Baehner Fournier Vineyards is located in the eastern hills of the Santa Ynez Valley. The Baehners decided to plant Bordeaux varietals on their property and are now bottling quality Santa Ynez Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot from hillside fruit. Their 2010 Baehner Fournier Estate Merlot is grown in gravely clay on sloping northeast-facing blocks. The wine is cold-soaked and fermented in small open-top fermenters with aging for 19 months in 20% new French oak. It's got a pleasing leathery cedary blueberry nose, with balance and layers of flavor, and lingering polish on the finish.

Living near the Sta. Rita Hills AVA, I often drive by the Kessler-Haak vineyard. Planted in 2005 and next to Clos Pepe, it's an organically farmed vineyard on rolling hillsides and sandy loam soils. I had yet to try their wines, but it's a no-brainer that the Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay would be as good as they were. I enjoyed the entire lineup, with the highlight being the 2010 Kessler-Haak Vineyards Pinot Noir Clone 2a. It towed the line between brooding dark fruit & earth, with brighter mineral and floral notes building tension and complexity- a very nice wine. With the vineyard at only 8 years of age, it will be fun to watch these Pinot Noirs develop complexities in future vintages.

Josh Klapper's La Fenêtre Wines come from multiple vineyard sites throughout Santa Barbara County. The specialty is bright and elegant Burgundian Varietals, along with Syrah. Josh's Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah from Santa Maria Valley were shining on this day. The 2010 La Fenêtre Chardonnay Bien Nacido shows beautifully bright lime and slate notes that counter a subtle toastiness. The 2010 La Fenêtre Pinot Noir Presqu'ile shows depth with rich dark fruit notes complimenting the floral earth and cherry elegance. One of the biggest and baddest Syrahs that I tasted at the event was the 2009 La Fenêtre Syrah Z Block Bien Nacido, showing wet-earth, sandalwood, cured meat and black currant, highlighted a bright mineral-acid streak and stitched together with huge structure- epic stuff.

Long a key vineyard in the new Ballard Canyon AVA, Larner Vineyard began producing its namesake wines in 2009. Ballard Canyon is known primarily for richly elegant Syrah and other Rhone varietals grown in the moderately cool hillside slopes in the center of the Santa Ynez Valley. The 2009 Larner Vineyard Elemental, a Grenache/Syrah blend, is hugely deep and expressive with mint, cherry, blueberry, earth and spice notes - quite a beautiful wine. The 2009 Larner Vineyard Syrah shows beautiful mineral, earth and floral notes that compliment the spice laden dark fruit. 

These aforementioned highlights capped off an enjoyable day of new Santa Barbara wine discoveries. Click here for a full list of 33 wines tasted at the event.

Beautiful Chardonnay at The Watering Hole

Tucked away in Los Olivos, almost hidden behind Mattei’s Tavern, is the unassuming home of the exciting new Sandhi Wines project. Opened in October of 2012, The Watering Hole as it’s called is the tasting room for Sandhi as well as other wines from the new Terroir Selections portfolio.

Sandhi was founded in 2010 by the famed sommelier Rajat Parr, former owner of Screaming Eagle & Jonata Charles Banks, and winemaker Sashi Moorman (Stolpman, Evening Land, Piedrasassi). The aim is to produce elegant and balanced Chardonnay and Pinot Noir of terroir-distinction from the Sta. Rita Hills AVA, including classic vineyards such as Sanford & Benedict, as well as newly emerging sites such as Rita’s Crown and Bent Rock.

 The current available lineup of Sandhi Wines highlights the best of what Santa Barbara County has to offer in Chardonnay. The Chardonnays are barrel-fermented and aged in neutral French oak, undergoing malolactic fermentation.

The 2011 Sandhi Santa Barbara County Chardonnay bottling is bright and complex with a trove of flint, mineral, citrus and honeyed spice notes throughout a rich sleek frame. It’s a pretty amazing introduction to a trio of single vineyard Chardonnays. The 2010 Sandhi Sanford & Benedict Chardonnay,Sta. Rita Hills comes from Mt Eden clones from the oldest blocks within the vineyard. This is a young and complex wine with notes of fresh cream, butter toffee, white florals, and tropical fruit. It’s bright and sturdy on the palate with earthy mineral highlights, lithe richness, and emerging spice on the finish- an absolutely beautiful wine.

View at Rita's Crown Vineyard, June 2012

Rita’s Crown Vineyard is an extreme vineyard site sitting atop Mt. Carmel in Sta. Rita Hills. It’s known for its diatomaceous soils and high elevation of up to 1000 feet. It’s windswept and cold, however the Sandhi 2010 Rita’s Crown Chardonnay, Sta. Rita Hills comes from warmer south-facing blocks. It shows juicy orange and lime zest notes with hints of hazelnut and honey, along with a beautiful textural richness that belies its angular acidity. It’s another beauty.

View at Bentrock Vineyard, June 2012

The 2010 Sandhi Bentrock Chardonnay, Sta. Rita Hills comes from another extreme site within the far southwestern corner of the AVA. Steeply sloped north-facing blocks are in the direct firing line of cool winds from the Pacific, creating concentrated flavors from low-yielding vines. It features a notably bright gold color with notes of vanilla, nutty butterscotch, creme fraiche, and complex tropical fruit – along with ample depth and sleek texture on the palate. This is another exemplary Chardonnay.

I also tasted a nice 2011 Sandhi Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir, and several other Terroir Selections wines. Click here for tasting notes on all wines tasted.

This is an exciting chapter in the wine evolution of Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Barbara County. Sandhi’s acclaim and attention are certainly well-deserved.

The Garagiste Festival hits Santa Barbara wine country

Small-lot producers of wine - often on the vanguard of winemaking and marketing trends - remind me of my passion for following new music. So I can think of no better venue for a group of "garagiste" wine producers than a veteran's hall. Longtime "DIY" venues for aspiring underground rock musicians, the veteran's hall is quite the utilitarian setting to help grow a network. The Solvang Veteran's Memorial Hall in Santa Barbara's Santa Ynez Valley will be the site for the Southern Exposure festival on Saturday February 16th, put on by Garagiste Events.

Garagiste Events began as a group of new winemakers and enthusiasts based around Paso Robles. Their Garagiste Festival grew to become a notable and important event on the California wine landscape. The idea was to promote the innovation of up-and-coming California winemakers by providing a dynamic venue for their exposure. They now operate as a non-profit benefiting the Cal Poly viticulture program, and are expanding their footprint beyond Paso Robles into Santa Barbara County.

The festival features many new names, as well as burgeoning Santa Barbara producers such as Baehner Fournier, Kessler-Haak, La Fenêtre, Piedrasassi and Tercero. The aforementioned alone representing a great cross-section of Santa Barbara County terroirs - from cool-climate Pinot and Chardonnay sites throughout the Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley, to the many Rhône varietal sites throughout the county, all the way to Happy Canyon where Bordeaux varietals are taking root.

So if you're looking for a reason to get out to Santa Barbara wine country, then mark your calendar. This looks like a great beginning to the 2013 wine season.

Thinking about a wine trip

Planning a good wine trip is something that gets me going. Deliberation of AVA's and interesting producers to visit are just part of the process. There's also the networking to get good appointments, then letting the logistics fall into place from there. Like any great vacation, the planning is a part of the process and can really extend the excitement and anticipation.

My wine tasting companions Justin and Jon are also a key part of the process. We've taken several trips over the last few years, and our three-man comedy show has become as much of a part of things as the wine itself. From grape-stomping competition strategies, to making fun of stupid questions at the wineries, to challenging Jon to spend too much of his money - these are memories to rival the great wines and scenery.

Fortunately it looks like my crew is available this Spring to tour the Santa Cruz Mountains, Napa, Sonoma and maybe Mendocino. I look forward to writing about it later this year.

Chateau Champoux 2011 Grape Stomping Champions

I recently recommended some wine touring stops in Santa Barbara County to Mike of the 10milewine.com blog. The visit was late December and the results were mixed. It looks like in December many producers are sold out or have not yet released their single vineyard wines.  If you're coming to Santa Barbara County and want to taste specific wines, i.e. the higher-end Pinot Noir and Syrah, I recommend contacting specific producers of interest to verify what they're pouring. Places like Melville or Foxen don't always have their smaller production wines available in the tasting rooms. And a must-visit place like the Lompoc Wine Ghetto, with it's amazing list of producers, is mostly closed through the week; so plan accordingly there as well. As non-wine country as the vaunted industrial park behind the Home Depot is, it may be the best concentration of Santa Barbara County wines available for tasting.

What also makes Santa Barbara County a challenge is that there are still many of the newest and most dynamic producers who do not offer tastings. Hopefully producers like Tyler, Paul Lato and Chanin will in the future add to the depth of what the area has to offer. Areas in the North Coast have such a depth of great wine that you think more about where you can taste rather than where you can't. In Santa Barbara County a few misses may leave you wanting.

If you're planning your own wine trip this year, drop me a line. I enjoy getting new tips for my future endeavors!

Just released- 2011 Tensley Syrah

A quick tasting stop this weekend in Los Olivos netted nice results, as a few of the newly released 2011 Tensley Syrah wines were available in their tasting room. These are low production and very well regarded – in other words you try them and buy them while you can.

Joey Tensley began producing his wines starting with the 1998 vintage. The original idea was to produce site-expressive Syrah from unique vineyard sights in Santa Barbara County. Most are made in a similar fashion with partial whole-cluster fermentation and using mostly seasoned French oak for about an 11 month elevage on lees. The single vineyard wines are generally released about a year after harvest. Production has grown to 4,000 cases with other Rhone varietals being produced as well as Pinot Noir from Jennifer Tensley under the Lea label.

The tasting featured the 2011 Santa Barbara County Syrah, the 2011 Thompson Vineyard Syrah and the 2011 Colson Canyon Vineyard Syrah. All show a common style of bold balanced fruit with secondary savory depth and hints of rusticity and old-world Syrah character.

The Santa Barbara County bottling comes from five sites from throughout the county, blending both warm and cool sites as well as a variety of soil types. It features nice forward brambly fruit with subtle spice and mineral accents, finely structured with good depth and length. It’s an attractive price point too at $25.

The 2011 Tensley Thompson Vineyard Syrah comes from the moderate climate Los Alamos Valley. The vineyard’s south-facing slopes ensure ripeness while the depleted soils keep yields low. I noted lots of blueberry, dried herb and peppercorn aromas and flavors that added rocky notes and brown spice through the palate. It was full and rich, yet balanced with gripping tannins and nice length and an underlying rusticity. Really nice but still so young, it’s a little unfocused at this point but should take shape nicely. 155 cases produced, $38.

 Lastly the 2011 Tensley Colson Canyon Vineyard Syrah comes from volcanic soils set high in the foothills above the Santa Maria Valley. It’s warmer than the valley floor due to its elevation above the fog line. The Colson Canyon is the only of Tensley’s single vineyard Syrahs to receive any new oak aging. Here I noted striking aromas- tea leaf, tobacco, spice, currant. It was layered and complex with subtle meaty notes through the palate. Round and polished throughout with firm structure and a full finish. It was the most distinctive at this point while still showing the potential to tie up the loose ends. Excellent. 1620 cases produced, $38.

I also tasted the 2011 Santa Barbara Grenache and the 2011 Lea Pinot Noir. Click here for the full lineup of notes. 

Food and wine night at Succulent Café

A recent dinner at stellar Solvang CA restaurant, Succulent Café, provided an opportunity to catch a glimpse of the Calluna Vineyards 2009 Culluna Vineyards Cuvée. I've been a fan of this newer Chalk Hill producer for a couple of years. Chalk Hill in Sonoma County, being cooler than either Napa/Calistoga to the east or Alexander Valley to the north, can provide an opportunity for enhanced structure and elegance in Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot-based wines.

Calluna Vineyards 2009 Calluna Vineyards Cuvée, Chalk Hill is an estate-grown right bank-style Bordeaux blend featuring Merlot & Cabernet Franc as the primary varietals, with barrel aging in about 40% new French oak. It's a great representation of Calluna's very classically-styled Bordeaux varietal wines. With dinner it showed very well, quickly coming to life with notes of violet, red currant, olive, cocoa, spice and mint throughout the palate- deftly balanced and highlighting the floral and red fruit notes. Polished with fine/firm tannin and a full finish. Excellent overall and even better for the price (selling for around $30), with the structure suggesting longevity (Rating- I like+!).

A word about Succulent Café- it's beautifully done low-key farm-to-table cuisine; French technique and southern influenced. A wonderful cheese plate with fresh local ingredients and main courses of braised short rib and duck confit cassoulet accompanied the wine. The restaurant does charge a corkage, but after offering our server some of the Calluna he responded very kindly by opening up two interesting local wines to taste.

Both of the local wines were Bordeaux varietal wines from Santa Barbara County. The first was Cuatro Vientos Vineyard 2009 "CS/CF", Santa Barbara County- a Cab Sauv/Cab Franc blend. It was a lush blend of fig paste, dates, anise and spice- with round and ripe blue & red fruit and secondary notes of toffee & chocolate along with round full tannins (rating- I like!). This seemed more influenced by the Cab Franc, showing a nice ripeness and depth without the trappings of overly green notes that Santa Barbara County Cabs and Cab Francs can sometimes have. I believe this wine is made by Margerum Wine Company, but I couldn't find any info online.

The second wine was Baehner Fournier 2009 Petit Verdot, Santa Ynez Valley. Baehner Fournier grows Bordeaux varietals in the eastern hills of the Santa Ynez Valley. The Petit Verdot sells for $42 with only 58 cases bottled. It started with aromas of brioche, cassis and slight notes of bell pepper. The palate added dried herb, spice and currant before finishing with round and firm tannin and ample finishing notes of sagebrush and spice (rating- I like!). Enjoyable and interesting indeed- would love to have some more time with this one.

Lompoc Wine Ghetto- Day 1

Nothings evokes wine country images quite like an industrial park behind a Home Depot store. Just beyond the tranquil vineyards and rolling hillsides of Sta. Rita Hills is the Lompoc Wine Ghetto. It sits at the edge of Lompoc, CA and houses a plethora of great Santa Barbara County producers -- both well known and emerging.  It's primarily tasting rooms, although there are a few winery operations there too. You could literally spend days tasting through all the wines.

I'm spending my Sundays there now working in the Arcadian tasting room. It's just a little part-time job as a hobby... Having worked hectic full time schedules in the wine business in my past life, it's a real pleasure to swoop in one day a week to talk about and taste wine with people who are there for that reason. I look forward to meeting people in the area and getting to know more about the wines.

An awesome lineup at Arcadian- as good as the Pinot Noirs were, the 05 Stolpman Syrah was stupid good. All the Syrah concentration and savory fruit with a Pinot Noir-like supple elegance.

A great lineup of 2009 Pinot Noir from Evening Land. One from Edna Valley and two from Sta. Rita Hills.

Santa Barbara County- The Arrival

It's been a hectic few weeks. A cross-country move by car was followed by work training and travel -- with temporary housing thrown on top. I'm in the Santa Barbara area, but circumstances have barely given me time to get to know the area -- much less unpack and enjoy wine. 

My final destination is 45 minutes north in the Santa Ynez Valley. I've spent a few days driving from one side of the valley to the other looking for a place to live. It's been a little surreal. Having traveled there for wine tasting it's now becoming a place of real life and responsibility. One thing that's striking is how much bigger the area seems when you're not breezing through for wine tasting. Visiting in May I visited wineries in Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley all in a single day. That seems a little crazy to me now. 

It's easy to understand some of the climatic and geographical differences of Santa Barbara's AVA's on a surface level. Starting a new life here however is a full realization of the enormity and diversity of the area. It's little things like making the drive from Lompoc to Solvang; along the way watching the thermometer in my car change, or watching the landscape and vegetation change. Or realizing that it might actually take me a half hour if I want to take the alternate route of Santa Rosa Road through the heart of Sta. Rita Hills. I'm fully realizing and respecting the uniqueness of the each wine region. I haven't even had time to get up to Santa Maria Valley yet -- it seems like a world away.

It's been a dry winter this year in Santa Barbara County. The dormant winter vineyards and dry landscapes of the hills and mountains show like a beautiful sophisticated face -- the projection changing with sunlight and mood. Poignant moments behind the wheel to and fro. 

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This past weekend was the first chance to get out and actually do some wine tasting. I visited the Tercero tasting room in Los Olivos, Rusack Vineyards, and Brewer-Clifton's open house. 

The Tercero Wines tasting room is located in the town of Los Olivos; amongst the plethora of tasting rooms, restaurants and shops. Tercero is the brainchild of Larry Schaffer, who switched mid-career from the publishing industry to wine. His focus is on Santa Barbera-grown and mostly Rhône varietals with a style that marries pure opulent fruit to balanced elegance with added subtle depth. The wines are focused and purely enjoyable. My favorites were-

 -2009 TerceroGrenache Blanc Camp 4 Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley- Aromas of pine and eucalyptus stand out, accompanied by lemongrass and slate. Lots of slate and citrusy flavors on the palate with nice feel and balance. Pure flavors. Medium finish. (I like+!)

-2007 Tercero Grenache Camp 4 Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley- Darker fruit profile on the bouquet than typical Grenache- chocolate-covered cherries, plum & anise. Flavors of black cherry, plum, cocoa and cracker pepper. Nice feel and weight. The tannins are firm and fine leading to a nice full finish augmented with spice notes. (I really like!)

-2007 Tercero Syrah, Thompson Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley- Meaty aromas of blueberry and cassis. Opulent on the palate with blue & black fruit along with savory notes highlighted with white pepper. Pure flavors with nice balance. Drinks with a nice roundness and fine tannins- finishing full. Pure enjoyment. (I really like+!)

The Rusack Vineyard tasting room is located along beautiful Ballard Canyon Road in the heart of the Santa Ynez Valley. This is a prime location for Syrah- which Rusack grows there in their vineyards. They also make the Bordeaux blend Anacapa from Santa Ynez Valley grapes as well as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley. Rusack is also launching a really cool project producing wines from Santa Catalina Island. The tasting room was crazy busy when I was there, but I managed to taste through their current releases. I found the wines to be enjoyable and balanced overall, albeit without anything that blew me away. The favorites were-

-2009 Rusack Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley- Black cherry, rhubarb, licorice spice on the nose. Layered fruit and mineral spice on the palate- red raspberry & cherry with an added note of tea. Silky fine tannins and a medium finish. (I like!)

-2009 Rusack Reserve Syrah Ballard Canyon,Santa Ynez Valley- Aromas of vanilla, cracked pepper, eucalyptus and blue & red fruit. Streamlines into blueberry, coffee bean and baking spice on the palate with a rich feel and round tannins. Medium finish and more notes of baking spice. (I like!)

The final stop was in Lompoc for Brewer-Clifton’s annual open house. The event featured current releases and library wines, as well as a meet and greet with Greg Brewer and Steve Clifton. I’m a big fan of their wines, which are vineyard designate Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (if you’re not familiar). All wines are vinified in the same manner, leaving the individual vineyards to speak for themselves. For example- all of the Pinot Noir is whole cluster fermented, inoculated with neutral yeast and aged in neutral French barriques. Favorites of the lineup included the 2010 3D Chardonnay, 2007 Rancho Santa Rosa Chardonnay, 2010 Gnesa Chardonnay, 2010 Machado Pinot Noir, 2010 3D Pinot Noir and the 2006 Rancho Santa Rosa Pinot Noir. My favorite overall was-

-2006 Brewer-Clifton Lindsay’s Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills- Really cool dank and rustic notes on the bouquet- earth, floral, red fruit and mineral. Bright raspberry & strawberry flavors with slate and earth- accented by briary spice notes toward the back of the palate. Silky fine tannins and a full breathy finish. (I loved!)

2011 Wine Travels- Santa Barbara Top 10

This past May I traveled to California and toured multiple areas of the Central and North Coasts. In September I did a second stint out west to the Willamette Valley and Eastern Washington.  I carefully planned producers to see and mapped my areas of interest. The end result was getting to taste some spectacular wine along the way.

As the year ends and I prepare to move from Atlanta to California, I'd like to take a little stroll down memory lane and list my favorite wines from each region that I visited in 2011. These are all wines tasted and notes written while on the road

Starting things off is Santa Barbara County. In Santa Barbara I visited Melville, Fiddlehead, Qupe/Verdad, Foxen, and the Bien Nacido Vineyard. It was a great day that saw my friends and I completely circling Sta. Rita Hills before heading into Los Olivos via Ballard Canyon Road, and then heading up Foxen Canyon Road to Santa Maria Valley. It's interesting that 2011 ended up being such a cool vintage for California, it was very hot in Santa Barbara in early May while I was there, even in the cool-climate Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley areas.

As you can see from the list there were lots of great Syrahs, and the 2009 Pinot Noir vintage was looking pretty good.

My 10 Favorite Santa Barbara wines from the trip-

2008 Foxen Pinot Noir Black 8 Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley

Tasted at Bien Nacido. Pungent bouquet with black fruit, mushroom, and cola. Very bold style continues to the palate. Black fruit, red fruit, mushroom, mineral, cola. Silky but a little hot. Gritty tannins and bold finish. Aggressive but somehow pulls it off- drinks and tastes like Pinot Noir. It's wild- I could see this being profound if it mellowed a little with bottle age. ( I really liked!)

2009 Tyler Pinot Noir N Block Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley

Tasted at Bien Nacido. Cola, plum, apple-cherry, spice- expressive bouquet. Mineral, red fruit, and spice- beautifully balanced with a silky feel, fine tannins, and a long finish. (I really liked!)

2005 Qupé Syrah Bien Nacido Hillside Estate, Santa Maria Valley

Tasting room pour. Gamey nose with plum, raw meat, leather, and olive- awesome. Black peppery fruit with plenty of mineral and savory depth on the palate. Firm tannins and long finish. Excellent. (I really liked!)

2010 Verdad Rosé Sawyer Lindquist Vineyard, Edna Valley

Tasted at the winery. Strawberry and peach aromas and flavors throughout. Leesy and rich with good finish. Very nice. (I liked!)

2008 Fiddlehead Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Happy Canyon, Santa Ynez Valley

Tasted at the winery. Lemongrass, apple, toast on the nose- rich and leesy style bold fruit and a long finish. Very nice. (I liked!)

2009 Melville Pinot Noir Carrie's, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasted at the winery. Lots of perfume and floral aromas along with cola, spice, and red fruit. Bright flavors on the palate- fruit, well-integrated spice, subtle earth notes. Great feel. Tannins firmer than past vintages. Big finish. It's all there- can't wait to spend a little more time with this and delve deeper. Very excellent. (I loved!)

2009 Melville Pinot Noir Terraces, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasted at the winery. Aromas are marked with cola, mushroom, earth, and black cherry. Balanced earth, spice, and fruit flavors- bold & intense & elegant at the same time. Lithe structure and feel, fine tannins. Long finish. Excellent. (I really liked!)

2009 Melville Chardonnay Clone 76 Inox Estate, Sta. Rita Hills

Tasted at the winery. Creamy melon & honey aromas. Hits the palate with brightness and strong acid. Lots of green apple/pear/melon, and leesy richness, along a lengthy finish. Very nice. (I really liked!)

2007 Qupé Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley

Tasting room pour. Gamey, leathery, peppery fruit on the nose. Black pepper, black olive, and lush black fruit fill the palate. Smooth silk feel, round tannins, and long finish. Excellent.  (I really liked!)

2009 Foxen Syrah Dry Farmed Tinaquaic, Santa Maria Valley

Tasted at Foxen tasting room. I lost track of my notes for this one, but you have to know it was a big gnarly savory monster- totally awesome. (I loved!)

Link to the photos-

2011- Sans Blog

Damn... what happened? The last time I posted the blog was called "Wineheimer" and it was September of 2010. It's been crazy busy since then with a wine sales job taking most of my time and energy.

2012 will bring a new location and hopefully the time and energy to post again. I'm relocating to Santa Barbara CA, and hopefully will be posting wine blogs in the new location from a new perspective. I'm no longer in the wine business, so I feel comfortable relaunching the blog from the perspective of a wine enthusiast and overall superfan!

In the meantime I'm posting a photo recap of my highlights of 2011.  The links below are photos from my vineyard travels of 2011... Santa Barbara, Paso Robles, Monterey, Napa, Sonoma, Willamette Valley, Columbia Valley. If you like vineyard pictures ad nauseum you'll want to check these out.

SANTA BARBARA 2011

PASO ROBLES 2011

MONTEREY, SAN BENITO, SANTA CRUZ

NAPA VALLEY

SONOMA COUNTY

MORE NAPA VALLEY

WILLAMETTE VALLEY 1

WILLAMETTE VALLEY 2

WALLA WALLA VALLEY

CHATEAU CHAMPOUX (please note that my team won the grape stomping championship!) and RED MOUNTAIN

Santa Barbara Wine Country- June '09

2009's wine country road trip started with a flight into LA on a Thursday morning and a quick jaunt up into Santa Barbara. By the time we finally made our way over the San Marcos Pass and into Santa Ynez Valley, we had time for a quick stop at Beckmen Vineyards to kick things off.

I had enjoyed their Cuvee Le Bec before (a Southern Rhone style blend) and had read about them otherwise, so I was looking forward to the stop. Walking in, the winemaker Steve Beckmen and the pourer were engaged with another party, so we looked over the two tasting options and opted for the basic tasting. Getting into the tasting we were able to get quite a few pours from the reserve list, so it all worked out.

Having just gotten off of a long early morning flight, talking to the winemaker was kind of blowing my mind... and my palate wasn't really connecting either. With that in mind, what I did enjoy were a couple of really good Sauvignon Blancs. The 2007 and 2008 Estates both were great wines. The 2007 being an explosive tropical fruit style not unlike a New Zealand SB, with the 2008 switching to a more traditional California style with notes of tree fruit and grassiness. Of the other wines I tasted, I was really taken by their Grenache. There was a Rose, an Estate bottling, and a Purisma Mountain vineyard bottling. The reds really over-delivered on grip and tannins- more than I expected from a Grenache. I also tasted a reserve and a Purisma Mountain Syrah. Opposite of the Grenache, the Syrahs gave less tannin and grip than expected, but the finesse was nice. I thought the Estate Syrah was a pretty good buy... would have to revisit the Purisma Mountain Syrah another time to get a good opinion on it.

Beckmen's wines are all in the $20-$50 price range, and they hold their own in their price points. The question with them is style. To me, their Rhone varietal reds have alot of mellow fruit and sweet spice notes. On the syrahs, they're lighter on the tannins and peppery notes that you might expect.


We ate dinner that night at the Hitching Post II. The steak was awesome as advertised. The wines on the other hand were a little disappointing. I tried the Santa Rita's Earth Pinot Noir and the Syrah. Both were all fruit, and seemed deflated by a lack of acidity and tannins. I probably should have tried the Highliner Pinot Noir to get a real feel for them. Again, it was long day and my palate could have been off...


The next day started with a tour at Melville Winery in Santa Rita Hills. Like Beckmen, Melville is all estate grown. Like most in Santa Rita Hills, Burgundian varietals are the focus. I'd been to the winery before and was already a fan; this trip further solidified my fandom. The tasting room manager hooked us up with a great tour that included a little jaunt out into the vineyards. We got to see newly formed clusters of chardonnay and syrah as she pointed out the differences between them.

As for the wines- we tasted though the Verna's & Santa Rita Hills Estate Chardonnays. Melville's Chardonnays are barrel fermented in mostly neutral oak and with just a little bit of maloactic fermentation, you get alot of nuanced fruit, minerality, and acidity... a Burgundian style that's really pleasing. The Pinot Noirs were from the estate small lot collection- Carrie's and The Terraces. Both of these wines are big and extremely complex- completely fantastic wines that you'll want to hang onto for a while. North of $50 per bottle, they're more than worth the price. There's alot of technical information on their website on the clones, vineyard practices, and winemaking practices for these wines (http://www.melvillewinery.com/)... too much to get into here. As for their other wines, they make a few Syrahs. We tasted the Estate Syrah... it's nice but a little anticlimatic after the Pinot's. Cool climate, lighter in style, finesse. I tend to like Santa Ynez Syrah over the Santa Rita Hills ones. The Verna's Viognier was really good- great aromatics, fruit, enough acidity... really nice. Thanks again Melville for a great visit.

As for the rest of the day, we hit the tasting room at Lafond in Santa Rita Hills. Some quick notes on Lafond- big, buttery, oaky Chardonnays, one was from the Sanford and Benedict Vineyard... good but not my favorite style; solid Pinot Noir- generous red fruit but nice balance with earthiness & spice- nice value on the Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir at $27; I wasn't big on the Syrah- felt like it needed more tannins. Overall I liked Lafond, but I would gravitate to the SRH line in the $20 range- really good values from a small collection of vineyards in Santa Rita Hills. Their single vineyard wines were good too, but the SRH line really delivers on bang for the buck.
Next we were at River Bench Winery in Santa Maria Valley. It is all estate grown fruit from the long standing River Bench Vineyard. They made a Pinot Noir Rose which I wasn't really into; three different Chardonnays that ranged from an unoaked style to a fully oaked maloactic style- all very good; and two Pinot Noirs. I liked their Pinot Noir. Differing from what I had in Santa Rita Hills, this was lighter in color & a little more fragrant with a really pronounced spice notes & acidity- the tannins and earthiness lurking in the background. All these wines ranged from $24 to $42- all fairly priced.

Finally on our way out of SB County we stopped at Laetitia in the Arroyo Grande Valley. It was "free tasting Friday" so we just tasted through some of the basics. The n/v Brut sparkler was very nice; they had a great little Pinot Gris; and their Pinot Noirs delivered as well. It was the end of the day, so my palate wasn't as sharp... I'd love to revisit and spend a little more time at Laetitia...

And then it was on to Paso Robles....

So putting this visit to Santa Barbara County into a synapsis... The Pinot Noirs excelled in both Santa Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley. The Chardonnay's were solid as well. I didn't find a Syrah (or other Rhone varietal) that I loved at any of the stops... I'd try Beckmen again and next time I'll get to Zaca Mesa and the Qupe tasting room.... Didn't try any Bordeaux varietal (other than Beckmen's excellent Sauv Bl) or Cal/Ital styles this time... Beckmen has a Cab on their list but wanted to pour something else instead.





At Beckmen, Santa Ynez Valley.

Melville Winery & Vineyards, plus newly formed chardonnay clusters- Santa Rita Hills

At Lafond, Santa Rita Hills.

The tasting room and vineyards at Riverbench Winery in Santa Maria Valley.

The tasting room and vineyards at Laetitia in the Arroyo Grande Valley.

Santa Barbara County Pictures

Last month I took a week-long jaunt through some of the highlights of California wine country. The trip included stops in Santa Barbara County, Paso Robles, Sonoma County, and Napa Valley. My son took tons of pictures, many of them turned out quite good. I'll end up using many of the pictures while writing about the wineries in various posts, but if you're interested I have all my Santa Barbara pictures up and tagged on flickr... check them out... http://www.flickr.com/photos/35155188@N06/.