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Monthly Archive for May, 2010
When Bruce first identified a section of Hilltop Ranch Vineyard as being particularly well suited to making rosé, we were becoming aware of a reenergized interest in these wines produced in a dry style with serious winemaking techniques.
A dry rose is a prized complement to food and company, particularly well suited for warm summer days outside as an apertif or to accompany a meal.
The 2009 Rose of Syrah is composed of syrah fruit from Hilltop Ranch Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills on an adjoining property to Lafond Vineyard.
The grapes were destemmed and hand sorted, followed by an overnight cold soak on the skins prior to pressing for proper color intensity. A cool fermentation took place entirely in stainless steel tanks.
This process preserves the electric color and the bright fruit flavors and aromas nicely balanced by firm acidity courtesy of the cool climate Sta. Rita Hills. A terrific wine with ample weight to enjoy with all but the heartiest of foods.
A simple lunch of cheese, cured meats, olives and bread is a favorite. Enjoy through the winter of 2011.
Suggested retail 15.00/750ml
Production: 206 Cases
To order: Santa Barbara Winery
Planted last year the vines were pruned back to 2 buds this spring. The first year is dedicated to growing a strong root system. This year we grow the vine out of the growth tube and train two canes that will be tied to the wire and provide the fruit canes for next year’s harvest.
The whole block is doing well, despite a cool spring, and a majority of the vines are at the stage shown in the photo. Next year’s harvest will be small, both naturally and because we will cut back in order not to stress the vine.
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90 Santa Barbara Winery 2008 Sauvignon Blanc (Santa Ynez Valley); $15. A beautiful Sauvignon Blanc that shows why this warmish Santa Barbara County valley is such a natural home for the variety. With crisp acidity and a creamy texture, it’s dry and minerally, with interestingly rich flavors of citrus fruits, melons and pears, and a touch of smoky oak. Editors’ Choice. —S.H.
87 Santa Barbara Winery 2008 ZCS (California); $13. This blend of Zinfandel, Carignane and Sangiovese probably tastes like the red wines the immigrants drank years ago. It’s bone dry and rustic and clean and pure, with modest alcohol. Wash it down with salumi, pasta marinara, or just a plain roast chicken.—S.H.
92 Santa Barbara Winery 2007 Reserve Chardonnay (Sta. Rita Hills); $22. This is an elaborate, oaky Chardonnay made in the popular style that has made California Chard such a success. It’s rich in pineapple jam, apricot, buttered toast, vanilla and leesy flavors, and grows better as it warms in the glass. —S.H.
90 Lafond 2007 SRH Chardonnay (Sta. Rita Hills); $22. Good price for such a nice Chardonnay from the Santa Rita Hills. The wine is very dry and crisp in acidity, with a bracing mouthfeel that offers rich, oak inspired flavors of pineapples, pears and green apples. Nice now with Ahi tuna tartare or grilled salmon. —S.H.
90 Lafond 2006 Pinot Noir Lafond Vineyard (Sta. Rita Hills); $48.This is a big, ripe, full-bodied and oaky Pinot Noir. It’s too powerful to drink now, unless you don’t mind immaturity. The raspberry, cherry and blood orange flavors are of the pie-filling type,and the oak sticks out in smoky, vanilla sweetness. Give it 4–5 years in the cellar to come around. Cellar Selection. —S.H.
New Santa Barbara Winery post at A Long Pour blogsite – “Lafond Vineyard – Pioneers and Pinot Noir“
…Wine is a large part of that way of life. With the Santa Ynez Valley only a half-hour drive from downtown, it is no wonder that many Santa Barbarians are well versed in the local wines. However, no winery has remained more at the heart of Santa Barbara’s wine culture than the one that bears its name: Santa Barbara Winery. I previously wrote about the winery in February, “The Fight for A Name.” The article focused almost exclusively on Santa Barbara Winery’s fight against The Foster’s Group’s use of the name The Santa Barbara Wine Company. Read about the controversy here.
If you can look past the controversy and legal battles, the winery has a unique story. I sat down with winemaker Bruce McGuire who manages the wine program for both Santa Barbara Winery and Lafond Vineyard, both owned by Pierre Lafond. Bruce has been with Pierre for nearly thirty years. We sat at a long table just outside their tasting room in downtown Santa Barbara. The region is known as The Urban Wine Trail and has seen the addition of many wineries in the blocks nearby over the past few years. Santa Barbara Winery is the “OG” of the group, calling the commercial neighborhood a few blocks from the beach “home” since 1964.
How did you become involved with wine?
“I met the right person at the right time. I came out to California to go to UC Davis Grad School. I went to the University of New Hampshire and had an entomology degree, and I was looking for agricultural systems that would be interesting. Growing grapes is probably the most sophisticated thing you can do. There are very few crops that are vintage dated…I guess the other influence I had was, I got my parents to give me a home wine making kit in the 10th grade.”So it was a long term interest for you?
“Well I had an uncle that was a really good home winemaker. It was interesting science.”Are you interested then in wine from a scientific standpoint, from the chemistry?
“Well for sure from an agricultural standpoint.”Do you like working with Grenache?
“Quite a bit.”Do you think it is going to become a more recognizable varietal?
“I don’t think it is going to be overdone like Syrah has been overdone. I think when people start to realize that a lot of Chateauneuf-du-Pape is primarily Grenache based, that kind of gives it a positive reference point. Growing up…my mother had Almaden Grenache Blanc in one of those jugs in the refrigerator. After trying other Rosé, Grenache Blanc was one of the better ones out there. But that was in High School.”Do you have a favorite aspect of wine making?
“I tell you, it’s not bottling. I have to say, in those ten days or week before the grapes are ripe and you are starting to spend a lot of focus time in the vineyard trying to figure out how a field should be picked. That decision is probably the most important one you make, when do you pick?”How does Sta. Rita Hills stack up to other Pinot regions?
“I think it blows Carneros away. The western Russian River and the Anderson Valley are both top notch. They are both different expressions. Santa Lucia Highlands is maybe more similar in some ways as far as the color and weight of the wines. Burgundy? Well, they have been going at it how long?”…
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