On Apr 9, 11:27�pm, Mark Lipton > wrote:
> Day 2 - Santa Rita Hills
> My second adventure began with a different entrance route, proceeding up
> US 101 for 60 miles until heading east on CA 126 to Santa Ynez. �The
> first stop of the day was at Alma Rosa, the winery started by Santa
> Barbara County wine legend Richard Sanford after selling his eponymous
> winery. �Located on a winding dirt road, the picturesque setting for the
> rustic tasting room set amidst the vineyards instantly put me in
> positive frame of mind. �The tasting room was manned by a charming aging
> hippie who regaled us with local gossip while also expounding on the
> wines he was pouring. �Again, given an option of two different tastings,
> I opted in this case for the all-Pinot tasting as that was the reason I
> was visiting.
>
> 2008 Pinot Noir �Clone 115 - bright strawberry and cranberry fruit,
> crisp acidity, tight
>
> A select clone drawn from their La Encantada vineyard, this wine was the
> antithesis of what one expects from the Santa Rita Hills. �More than
> anything else, it resembled a 2006 Drouhin Chorey-les-Beaune that we had
> at Christmastime.
>
> 2008 Pinot Noir Clone 667 - black raspberry, sliightly alcoholic, fairly
> full bodied
>
> Another clone from the same vineyard. �What a difference clonal
> selection makes! �This was big, dark and alcoholic.
>
> 2008 Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills - earth, minerals, dark fruit, medium
> body, acids
>
> Their more generic bottling, this was scaled back from the Clone 667 and
> more restained, a theme that would run through most of the wines here.
>
> 2007 Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills - red raspberry, slightly alcoholic,
> tannic, rich
>
> And here we note the difference that vintage makes. �Everywhere I went,
> 2007 was described as a "dream" year, by which they meant that it was
> easy and uncomplicated to grow and harvest grapes and make wine from
> them. In comparison to the '08, this wine was both lighter and more
> structured, showing me more promise for future development, marred only
> by the alcohol evident in the nose (14.5% vs. 14.1% for the '08).
>
> 2007 Pinot Noir La Encantada Vyd - red cherry, beet, perfumed, firm
> acidity, deep fruit
>
> Less tight and structured than the '06, which we'd had earlier in the
> year. �This year's version was rounder and more giving, but showed less
> promise for further development. It will still likely benefit from a few
> years in the bottle.
>
> Our next stop was at Dierberg, west on 126 en route to Lompoc. �In
> addition to making wines with the Dierberg label from grapes grown in
> the Santa Maria Valley, they also make Star Lane wines (sounded like a
> bowling alley to me) from Santa Ynez Valley grapes (they have 100+ acres
> there, only 13 of which are currently under vine) and have a second
> label (Three Saints) for declassified fruit. �Again, we were the only
> visitors there. �The wines were poured by the charming Holly, an enology
> student at Cal Poly SLO and a great spokesperson for the wines.
>
> 2007 Star Lane Sauvignon Blanc - grapefruit, floral, mineral, crisp
> acidity -- very much in the Marlborough SB mold
>
> 2008 Dierberg Chardonnay "Steel" - stones, a hint of citrus fruit, crisp
> acidity, fairly light on its feet -- I'd liken this to a good Macon or
> Beaujolais Blanc
>
> 2007 Three Saints Chardonnay Santa Maria Vly - sulfur, slightly toasty,
> lightly buttery, modest fruit, balanced acidty -- yawn
>
> 2007 Three Saints Pinot Noir Santa Maria - initially piney, dark fruit,
> oak, medium body -- yawn squared
>
> 2006 Dierberg Pinot Noir - soft, feminine, rich fruit, not oaky -- OK,
> but unexciting
>
> 2006 Star Lane Merlot - slightly green, plums, soft, rich, some
> structure -- not bad, but it's Merlot
>
> 2006 Dierberg Syrah - brambly, dark fruit, structured -- a very
> creditable example of CA Syrah
>
> 2005 Star Lane Cabernet Sauvignon (80/15/5 CS/M/PV) - herbal, pencil
> lead, firmly structured, dark fruit -- appealingly savory, surprisingly
> structured
>
> 2005 Star Lane Cabernet Sauvignon 'Astral' - cassis, soft, jammy --
> pretty much the antithesis of the previous wine
>
> The final stop of the trip was in Solvang, that kitschy Dutch-American
> community in the midst of the Santa Ynez Valley. �Au Bon Climat, the
> pioneering producer of Burgundian wines headed by the iconoclastic Jim
> Clendennen, has no tasting room, but their are available for tasting at
> a wine bar/retailer Taste of the Valleys in downtown Solvang. �They were
> pouring 6 ABC wines, so for $15 I could taste all 6 plus another wine.
>
> 2006 ABC Santa Maria Valley Chardonnnay -- sulfur and toast on the nose,
> a reasonable, lemony Chardonnay that isn't flabby in the mouth
>
> 2005 ABC Hildegarde White (Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc/Aligot� -- apples and
> lemons amidst butter and oak
>
> 2007 ABC Pinot Noir Isabel Morgan -- stewed tomatoes in the nose (heat
> damage?) but silky and rich on the palate
>
> 2007 ABC Pinot Noir Knox Alexander -- smoke and beets, structured with a
> hint of oak
>
> 2006 ABC Pinot Noir Los Alamos Vineyard -- a bit of alcoholic heat, red
> fruit, firm acids and a long finish, quite appealing
>
> 2006 ABC Pinot Noir Sanford-Benedict Vineyard -- smoke, minerals and
> spice, rich, deep fruit with great balance, very nice stuff
>
> And now for something completely different:
> 2007 Margerum M5 (Syrah/Grenache/Mourvedre/Counoise/Cinsault) -- fresh
> red fruit in the nose, but a creamy texture belies the structural
> elements, not too bad.
>
> (Doug Margerum's father is a colleague of mine, now Emeritus, so I had
> to satisfy curiosity)
>
> With that as my finale, I departed Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley,
> heading back to my digs in Ventura. �Highlights from this day were the
> Alma Rosa Clone 115 PN, the Dierberg Syrah and the ABC Sanford-Benedict
> Pinot. �Each of the producers had something to offer, but none of the
> wines tasted are likely to be mistaken for a cool climate wine.
>
> Mark Lipton
>
> --
> alt.food.wine FAQ: �http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

Mark, I noticed that none of the tastings included a 100% grenache
wine. Were they not available?