Tag Archives: wine tasting

CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE, GIGONDAS, AND CRESTET – THE BEST OF NORTHERN PROVENCE

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As a wine blogger, I really like to explore the wine regions I visit. We are in the Avignon area for six weeks, and I had been itching to get to Châteauneuf-du-Pape to taste some of their fantastic wines on-site and to learn more about the culture and process of this renowned region. At the recommendation of Lauren, proprietor of the wonderful Art, Wine, and Design Shop in Villeneuve-les-Avignon, I called Valentina of MistralTour.fr and set up an all-day tour this past Friday. Dorianne and our daughter, Grace, joined us. Most of the photographs in this post were taken by Grace – here is a (LINK) to her website.

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Valentina is a delight – an Italian who lives in France and speaks perfect English; she is very vivacious and professional. She is an excellent guide.

Our tour took us to the Village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, where we went up to the ruins of the original chateau and surveyed the beautiful countryside laced with vineyards in all directions. Along the way, Valentina talks about all things wine – she really has a good degree of knowledge and makes everything clear.  Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a storied wine region centered around the town of the same name. The AOC (LINK) allows for 18 varietals (not 13 as is commonly believed). From Wikipedia.com: “Both red and white varieties are allowed in both red and white Châteauneuf-du-Pape. There are no restrictions as to the proportion of grape varieties to be used, and unlike the case with other appellations, the allowed grape varieties are not differentiated into principal varieties and accessory varieties. Thus, it is theoretically possible to produce varietal Châteauneuf-du-Pape from any of the eighteen allowed varieties. In reality, most Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines are blends dominated by Grenache. Only one of every 16 bottles produced in the region is white wine.” 

I was unfamiliar with whites and rosés from this region, but let me tell you, there are some amazing wines here. U.S. retailers and restaurants should be getting on the bandwagon for the whites and rosés of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and  Gigondas.

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Chateau de Vaudieu. Side entrance.
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La Cave at Chateau de Vaudieu.

Then we drove just down the road to Chateau de Vaudieu (LINK) for a tour and a private tasting with the winemaker, Christophe. Chateau de Vaudieu dates from 1767. They have 70 hectares (173 acres) of grapes under cultivation, all around the chateau.

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Winemaker Christophe and his wines.
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A White Chateauneuf-du-Pape – whites make up 15% of Chateau de Vaudieu’s production. Grenache 75% – Roussanne 25%.
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Another White Chateauneuf-du-Pape – whites make up 15% of Chateau de Vaudieu’s production. 100% Grenache Blanc.

Lirac is an AOC just across the Rhône River from Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It has similar varietals and soils, and the wines are a bargain. Quite a few Châteauneuf-du-Pape growers bottle Lirac Wines.

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is 2012 Plateau des Red Oak , Lirac. Grenache/Syrah blend.
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2012 Chateau de Vaudieu Red. AOC CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE. Grapes : Grenache 74% – Syrah 26%

Next, we went into the village to the wine shop of Domaine Durieu, where the winemaker was also present for part of our stay, then we tasted four of their wines. I should add that Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines are among the best in France. No photos here.

Then a long drive through he region to La Verrière, in Crestet up on a mountain, where we had a wonderful lunch, a conversation with the owner (Nicole Rolet who co-owns with her husband, Xavier) and the winemaker, and tasted the award winning Chene Bleu Rhône wines (LINK); then we had a complete tour of the facilities. This is one of the most beautiful wine estates I have ever seen in France, and after speaking with the principals, I can see why.

This team produces some excellent wines and they have created an atmosphere of success at their beautiful property. The wines were smooth, well-crafted, beautifully balanced and simply delicious. They are available in the U.S. and elsewhere, so check their website (LINK) for more information, or Google the wine names.

Note that the Chene Bleu wines are made outside of the French AOC system – Nicole and Xavier felt too bound by the rules of the local AOC, so they deviated, and it has been a battle for acceptance. Of course, the wines speak for themselves and have received numerous awards and recognitions.

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Owner Nicole Rolet, our guide, Valentina, and the wines of Chêne Bleu at Domaine de la Verrière.
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The Chêne Bleu (Blue Oak) at Domaine de la Verrière – painted with copper paint.
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The wines of Domaine de la Verrière, labeled Chêne Bleu.

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Me and the Winemaker, Jean-Luis Gallucci.

Then we were off to Gigondas, another storied region, for a tasting at Domaine des Bosquets (LINK), owned by the same family as Chateau de Veudieu. We tasted several wines with the owner/winemaker at this location as well. Winemaker Julien Bréchet hosted our tasting. The Gigondas is very similar to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with a focus on Grenache and Syrah as the primary varietals. The main difference is the type of soil – less gravely and with more limestone and sand than Châteauneuf-du-Pape, plus a higher elevation with more verticality to the vineyards. The wines at Domaine des Bosquets were similar in style to those from Chateau de Veudieu – smooth, well-structured and elegant. The Gigondas is a great wine region.

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2014 Domaine des Bosquets Blanc – 80% Grenache – 20% Roussane – This white is made on the high elevation plot called “Cheval Long”. Handpicked, and vinified in oak barrels, only several cases are released.
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2013 Domaine des Bosquets Rouge cuvée « Le Lieu dit… » – The laying down wine from the estate’s celebrated plot, vinified and matured pure. This is a Grenache in all its splendor, in turn opulent, soft, elegant and blessed with beautiful length on the palate.
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2013 Domaine des Bosquets Rouge cuvée « La Colline… » – This parcel was planted into the rocks by our ancestors. It overlooks the estate and stretches as far as the edge of the Dentelles de Montmirail.
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2009 Domaine des Bosquets Rouge cuvée « Le Lieu dit… »
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Grace (our official photographer for the trip), Me, and Dorianne in the vineyard at Domaine des Bosquets

Then we explored the nearby hilltop town of Gigondas a bit before heading back to our apartment.

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It was an amazing day that filled my need to explore somewhat more n depth the areas we visited and to learn more about the wines. We made purchases at every stop! This is a very rich region, part of the overall Rhône Valley Region, so there is much, much more to explore. So we will have to do some more exploring on this trip, and we will have to come back.

And again, I cannot give enough praise to Valentina of MistralTour.fr (LINK) – she is a professional and makes your time together very enjoyable, while giving you as much, or as little inside information as you would like. And her prices really are a bargain.

WESTERN SONOMA – A TASTE OF THE POSSIBILITIES

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The other day, I was joined by Sonic Nourishment (LINK) musicians Erika Luckett and Lisa Ferraro for a day in western Sonoma for some wine tastings and lunch. It was a perfect day weatherwise, and we began with a drive out to Iron Horse Vineyards (LINK) near Sebastopol.

Known for their sparkling and white wines, Iron Horse consists of just over 100 acres of vineyards. We opted for two tastings, with Lisa getting the sparkling wines and me getting the white wines (Erika was our designated driver). The sparklers were all well-crafted (with the exception of one that turned out to be a bad bottle – when we pointed it out to the tasting room personnel, another one was opened, which was fine). I am not a huge sparkling wine fan, but I do appreciate the bubbly from time to time, and these were all very drinkable to me. Lisa said that she was overall less impressed than on a prior visit to Iron Horse.

The whites, all Chardonnays, were equally well-crafted, especially the 2012 Rued Clone Chardonnay which was especially well-crafted with a nose of white fruit – pears and apples – with a hint of caramel. Very nice. We did not taste any of their Pinot Noirs, saving our strength for the long day ahead.

One note – the tasting notes pages at Iron Horse said nothing about the wines, only naming some suggested food pairings. Since there was no food available, I did not find this very helpful. On the other hand, the tasting room staff was very helpful and paid attention to everyone.

Next, we headed into Healdsburg (LINK) for lunch and to hit a couple of tasting rooms there.

After a healthy lunch at the Oakville Grocery, we headed over to Banshee Wines (LINK), for some Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, a Cabernet and a red blend. Banshee sources fruit from a number of Sonoma coastal and inland vineyards. They produce wines that are more Californian than Burgundian in style, which is not surprising. Lisa and I each did their basic tasting (there is also a reserve tasting), of three Chardonnays and two Pinot Noirs. They were all well-crafted and very good (think somewhere between oaky and stainless steel for the Chardonnays; the reds were very nice with one exception – The 2013 Mordecai Red Blend, made up of 9 varietals, had such an off-putting nose (think swampy) that neither Lisa nor I could get to the tasting. We asked the tasting room staff if this was a bad bottle, and were told that it was fine. We dumped that one.

Otherwise, the Banshee Wines that we tasted were enjoyable. Like many smaller producers in the area, their price points are a bit high for the average buyer – but if you like the wines, you will buy them.

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Our final stop of the day (we needed to beat the traffic back to the East Bay), was Thumbprint Cellars (LINK), whose tasting room is just off the square in Healdsburg. I had some of their wines a couple of years back, when they were regularly featured on the Wines Till Sold Out (www.WTSO.com) site, and liked them very much. When I mentioned that to the tasting room staff, I was told that those were special blends made just for WTSO at the time.

We started with their 2013 Arousal white blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, a floral nose, very rich mouth feel, and smooth finish on this one. We also tasted the 2011 Climax red blend, a mix of 44% Syrah, 26% Merlot,
20% Zinfandel, 7% Cabernet Franc, 3% Viogner. This one is very smooth and complex (as you might imagine), but well-balanced. Very nice. I brought a bottle of this one home; so did Lisa. The 2011 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon was everything you would want in a Sonoma Cab – rich, spicy, bold, and lots of dark fruit, but with an elegance that is so often missing in “big” wines.

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Thumbprint Cellars Tasting Room

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So that was our day in Western Sonoma. Like all such tasting outings, we had a great time and missed a lot of wineries. But that gives us something to go back for.

FREIXENET CAVA (Sparkling Wine) – THE GOOD STUFF

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During our recent visit to the Penedès DO near Barcelona, we also visited the legendary Cava producer, Freixenet (LINK). Known in America mostly as a producer of very cheap sparkling wine suitable for college parties and sports celebrations (where most of the wine is shot out of the bottle), it is often hard for U.S. consumers to imagine high-end Freixenet Cavas. But that is what we had during our visit to the winery.

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Cava (LINK) is the Spanish sparkling wine, similar in processing to French Champagne, but using different grapes and the name “Cava” is not limited to a specific geographic region or appellation. The primary grapes used in Cava are:

  • Macabeu (white)
  • Parellada (white)
  • Xarel·lo (white)

Other grapes:

  • Chardonnay (white)
  • Pinot Noir (red)
  • Garnacha (red)
  • Monastrell (red)

Freixenet uses the first three almost exclusively.

We did not do a tour of the extensive facility (90 million bottles per year) in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia. We went right to the tasting room, after wandering around a bit and seeing some of the marketing vehicles the winery has used over the years and some of the “art” on display in the main building.

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The tasting room is in the 3rd floor of a large production building that has a large gift shop on the first floor where you can get your “inexpensive” black bottle of Freixenet  that you remember from your formative years, along with lots of other things. The tasting room is large and well appointed – and handled a tour group of about 50 young people easily while we were there.

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We opted to taste four wines from the Cuevèe Prestige Collection, their higher end cavas, and one, the Brut Nature Reserva 2009, that is the favorite of the locals in Spain. Now, Dorianne is more of a sparkling wine fan than I am, and she was the driving force behind our visit – having many fond, if foggy, memories of evenings where that black bottle played a role. But I was game, so we tasted.

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We began with the Trepat 2013, a Blanc de noirs” style cava, that is a single vineyard wine – rare in this business. The wine was sharp, tart, and had a very strong degree of carbonation. This would be a great wine with a ripe cheese.

Next, we tasted the Cuvèe DS 2007 Gran Reserva, using Macabeo, Xarel•lo and Parellada grapes. It is only produced when the harvest is very good. This wine was more balanced than the Trepat and had a nice sense of fruit and not too much sugar. 

Then, the Brut Nature Reserva 2009, the cava that sells the best in Spain (according to the tasting room staff). The wine is only produced in certain years. It is a smooth and well-crafted cava that would accompany a meal of fish or chicken, or, well, just about anything.

Next, the Riserva Real, a non-vintage cava, made in the Champagne style, meaning a blend of vintages. This cava, like some of the others, is aged in chestnut barrels. This wine was very nicely crafted, with a hint of minerality on the nose and a very smooth mouthfeel. Fruit and spice. A really nice sparkling wine.

Finally, the CASA SALA Brut Nature, Gran Reserva 2005, the highest priced wine we tasted. This wine was similar to the Riserva Real, but not quite as well balanced. The wine is  produced at the original properly of the family (The Casa Sala’s) via manual harvest, pressed in a wine press from the Champagne region that is more than 150 years old, fermentation with native yeast, and wine decanting and maintenance by gravity, without using pumps. This brut nature has no dosage and is reminiscent of the traditional cavas of 50 years ago. Two traditional grape varieties are used for the blend, Xarel•lo and Parellada, and their percentages in the cuvée change from year to year. 

If you come to the Barcelona region, a visit to the Pendedès DO is worth your while. I would say that the better cavas of Spain can take a seat beside most French Champagnes, and, like most Spanish wines, they are a great value.

IN CATALONIA – A WINE REGION FULL OF LIFE

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Dorianne and I are in Sitges, Spain this week, which is a beach town south of Barcelona. Just east and slightly inland from Barcelona is the Penedès DO Wine Region, home to a variety of wines, including Cavas, the sparkling wines of Spain. More about cavas in later posts. This concerns our visit to Bodegas Torres (LINK), in Villafranca del Penedès, one of the largest wine makers in Spain.

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The Penedès DO Wine Region

Bodegas Torres is truly a huge operation with a storied history and wine production all over the world (LINK). The Penedès Winery is a state of the art facility producing wine and brandy and is located next to the family home. It is roughly on the level of a Mondavi or a Gallo-sized operation, to give you an idea. The wine tour (which we were given alone with a guide, Archie, a young man from England) includes a tram and Universal Theme Park-like effects, which were inspired, we learned, by a family visit to Universal Studios in Los Angeles. So this is not your boutique winery.

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That being said, the company is taking strong steps at environmental sustainability (LINK), including recycling, energy and land conservation, increased organic and biodynamic farming practices, and the like. The tour highlights many of these practices, which the company obviously sees as a good way to market their wines. I agree with them.

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Reservoir used to clean equipment – water is recycled through the artificial wetlands.
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Sand dome over a reserve cellar to provide insulation
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Pheremone capsule to keep flies from laying eggs in the grapes

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The winery facility in Penedès processes millions of bottles of wine annually. It has the look and feel of a place that has the resources to create whatever the owners want – the buildings are nicely appointed, the vineyards well tended, the equipment is in excellent condition, plus there are very nice touches for the customer at every turn. There are about a dozen wines and several brandies produced here. Our tasting after the tour was limited to five wines from three regions in Spain. Archie our guide, has been with the company for about a year and is working toward wine certifications in England. His plan is to work in the wine industry. He showed a great deal of knowledge about the entire process, and he was able to answer most of our questions. The tour would be an excellent introduction for someone new to wine production, and we learned a thing or two as well.

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Barrel Storage Cellar
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Bottle Aging Facility
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Our guide, Archie, describing pruning techniques.

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As to the tasting – the wines we tried – two whites (blancos) and four reds (tintos), were all well-crafted and balanced wines. We tasted across several of the labels of the winery – (there are dozens). The blancos, were a 2013 Jean Leon Chardonnay from Penedès DO, and a 2013 Torres Fransola Sauvignon Blanc. The Chardonnay was 50% oak barrel aged and 50% stainless steel. It was similar to the increasingly popular style of Chardonnay from California, which is less buttery and powerful. The wine was refined and nice on the nose and in the mouth. Very good. The Sauvignon Blanc was more in the French style – smooth and elegant. The wine did not jump out at you with citrus or grassy notes like New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs; rather it seduced you a bit – this wine would be amazing with shellfish, we both agreed.

The four tintos were also all well-structured and balanced wines. They included a 2012 Torres Altos Ibericos Crianza Rioja, a Tempranillo with good character. Moderate tanins and acid make this wine good for drinking alone or with food, such as barbecue or some wonderful Iberico Jamon. The second tinto, a 2012 Torres Celeste Crianza from  Ribera del Duero DO, a Tinto Fino (the name for Tempranillo in that region). This wine was more fruity and had lower tanin – but was clearly well-crafted. Very nice. Next, we moved on to the two higher-end wines in the tasting. A 2012 Torres Salmos a blend of Cariñena (60%) Garnacha Tinta (20%) and Syrah (20%) grapes from the Priorat DO. I have really enjoyed just about every Priorat wine that I have tasted, and this one was no different. A very dark, rich color, fruity and spicy on the nose, and bold fruit-forward in the mouth, very thick (but not unpleasantly so) mouthfeel and a long, silky finish. I really love this wine. Finally, we go to the 2010 Mas la Plana Cabernet Sauvignon from the Penedès DO. This wine brings a greater complexity with some mushroom on the nose and hints of minerality just behind the fruit. Good tanins and acidity balance on the tongue and the finish is smooth and elegant. I liked this just a tiny bit less than the Salmos. The latter two wines should age beautifully. You can research more details at the Torres links above. This may not be the winery visit and tour for everyone – it is a very large facility and run like one. But it does give good insights into the Spanish Wine Industry. There are a number of smaller wineries in the region as well.

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The Tasting Room at Torres
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The Blancos (whites)
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The Tintos (reds)
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Dorianne, Jim and Archie after the tasting.

THE BOX WINE TASTING PANEL HAS SPOKEN

Wine Opinion, Wine Review, ,

VinePair.com, a great site, has an article (LINK) about a tasting panel for boxed wine. Reading the article, it is pretty clear that many on the panel liked fruity wines that are not complex – so bear that in mind. Box wine is fine for those who enjoy that type of wine – and the wine lasts longer after opening because there is no air getting in with the wine – a bag in the box collapses as wine is poured. By the way, Wineberry was a big hit.

So, there you have it!

Wine - Box Wine Interior Wine - Box wine Wineberry

SOME AMAZING PINOT NOIRS

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On Saturday, I joined a group for a wine tour of four wineries in the Santa Rita Hills Appellation (LINK), near Santa Ynez, California. The four were: Tyler, LaFond, Margerum, and Ken Brown. I will blog about each separately, beginning with Ken Brown Wines (LINK). The Santa Rita Hills are located about 30 miles north of Santa Barbara. A unique geological area, they are on a circular land mass that separated from the North American tectonic plate about 12 million years ago. Since then, that circle of land has been turning about 1/4 inch per year, so that now, the mountain ranges and valleys run east to west instead of north to south. This provides a “chute” for cool breezes and moisture from the Pacific Ocean to come farther inland and created one of the perfect places on earth to grow Pinot Noir. The film “Sideways” (LINK) was filmed here (before the appellation was established), and the rest is, well, a rich history.

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Ken Brown is a legendary winemaker in the Santa Rita Hills area. He began at Zaca Mesa Wines. His first name is actually Byron, and after Zaca Mesa, he started Byron Winery in 1985, selling it to the Mondavi Family in 1990. He said that both of those wineries got to the level of 80 to 90,000 cases in annual production, and by that point, actually before that, it was no longer fun for him. The current annual production at Ken Brown Wines is just about 3,000 cases in total.

Along the way, Ken Brown has trained a number of winemakers in the area, including Jim Clendenen of Au Bon Climat and Bob Lindquist of Qupé Winery. His tasting room is in Buellton, CA, just off the 101 Freeway. It is very nicely appointed, with a corkwood floor that got a lot of attention from some of the women on the tour.

Ken Brown Holding forth about his Wines.
Ken Brown Holding forth about his Wines.

Ken was very expansive in describing his process of winemaking and each of his wines. We tasted one Chardonnay, five Pinot Noirs and one Syrah. My general comment is that his wines are amazingly well-crafted in a Burgundian style, not big fruit bombs like many California wines. In fact, some in our tour group thought his wines were not big enough.

I found them to be nuanced, balanced, and each had different characteristics. I just about fell in love.

The Chardonnay was beautifully made, and very oaky – not to my taste, but you could readily smell, taste, and see the quality of the wine. Several bottles of this were purchased by tour members.2015-02-07 15.43.28 2015-02-07 16.11.47

Each of the five Pinots, one a blend of two Santa Barbara appellations, the rest from Santa Rita Hills, two blends of vineyards and two single-vineyard wines, had a strong sense of place and a very nice blend of fruit, mineral, and spice.

I won’t go into all of the individual wines in detail – mainly because it is unlikely you will be able to get any! All are small production, and available only through the winery (LINK to wine shop site).

I purchased the 2012 Zotovich Vineyard Pinot Noir (LINK), a very complex Pinot; the 2012 Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir (LINK), his most approachable Pinot – fruity and very refreshing; and the 2012 Watch Hill Syrah (LINK), a rich fruit-forward Syrah with great complexity. If we were not moving soon, I would have bought more.

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If you are in the Santa Rita Hills area any time soon, put Ken Brown Wines on you list of places to visit, You will not be disappointed (unless you only like the big, big wines. Then you better stick to Paso Robles).

WINE TASTING & LOBSTER TRUCK COMBINATION

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Here in the Thousand Oaks/Malibu, CA area, we are awash in wine – a good thing. There are over twenty wineries in the two Malibu AVA’s, and a lot of tasting rooms, wine bars, and wine-centric retailers in the Thousand Oaks/Westlake Village area. The competition is growing as the area is developing into a wine destination. Last night, a groups of us joined a large crowd at Sunland Vintage Winery Tasting Room (Link) in Thousand Oaks. The proprietors, Michael and Debby Giovinazzo, held court in a bustling tasting room, pouring $5 glasses of wine for their Thursday evening promotion Tantalizing Thursday, featuring different food trucks each week. Last night it was Cousin’s Maine Lobster Truck (Link), featuring lobster rolls, chowder, tacos and more. 2015-02-05 18.20.29 2015-02-05 18.20.44

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Tip Jar on the Lobster Truck

We settled in at a large table (nine of us), and ordered some wine from the server, Merissa. We started with the Albarino, a nicely crafted white that was perfect with lobster. The line for the Lobster Truck was long, but convivial. Then we headed into the land of the reds. Sunland has two labels, Giovinazzo Wines – Italian varietals like Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Teroldego, and Barbera, and their SVI Brand – Premium Wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Zinfandel, the Albarino,  and Bordeaux Blends. 2015-02-05 18.52.05 2015-02-05 18.51.36 The wines are very well crafted. It is very unusual to have so many Italian varietals from a California winery, so you have to give Sunland credit for being ambitious. We did not taste all of the wines – the $5 per glass format of the evening precluded that, but we did have a sampling. On the Italian side, the Giovinazzo Wines label, we tasted the Dolcetto (harsh and very acidic, and I usually like Dolcettos); Montepulciano (very nice, smooth and balanced, best of the night); Malbec (also nicely balanced, but not very distinctive). From the SVI Wines label, we had the Albarino (very nice, smooth, fruity, grassy); Zinfandel (very sweet, big, ripe, almost a dessert wine); Cabernet Sauvignon (well-crafted, balanced, nice fruit/mineral balance). I plan to return to get some time to taste some of these wines again and to try some of the others. I also want to speak to Mike and Debby when it is less hectic. Sunland Winery is a great addition to the Thousand Oaks wine scene.

ALMA SOL WINERY – SMALL PRODUCER GETTING BETTER AND BETTER

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Dorianne and I returned to Alma Sol Winery’s tasting room the other night with three other couples. Alma Sol Winery (Link) is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of John Shaw and Lisa Cuevas Shaw.

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The heading of the tasting list at Alma Sol Tasting Room in Thousand Oak, CA

John Shaw, who serves as winemaker for the couple – really a two-person operation, from the vineyard to the tasting room – met us at the door. Lisa Cuevas Shaw was inside with a bottle of wine in her hand. We began the evening’s tasting, which John had selected from his list of Bordeaux-influenced wines.

“It’s a cool evening,” he said, “so it’s all reds and all full-bodied wines.”

The wines he poured were indeed, red and were generally fuller bodied wines as well. The exception was the first wine, a 2010 Cuevas Cabernet Sauvignon, which was very elegant and a fruit-forward wine. After that, the wines had more of a mineral presence and varied as to the fruit presence. I won’t go into detail, because these wines are produced in such small quantities that they are very unlikely to show up outside of the tasting room. You can obtain some of them at the website (link above).

We first met John and Lisa at the Paso Robles Garagiste Festival a couple of years ago. They told us that they would be opening a tasting room in Thousand Oaks – our neck of the woods – very soon. The location is shared with Sunland Vintage Winery (Link), whose mostly Italian varieties we plan to return to sample soon. Alma Sol, using mostly grapes from the Cuevas Vineyard in Paso Robles and other fruit sourced from Paso and as far north as Napa Valley. In fact, we tasted a blend of five Napa Bordeaux-style grapes in the tasting – it was made in a middle ground between the French and California styles –  fruity and elegant, but higher in alcohol.

We finished the tasting with their dessert wine: 2012 Almazan Dessert Wine, Paso Robles ($34.00)

From their website: This Portuguese Port-style wine uses both Tempranillo and Touriga Nacional grapes from the east side of Paso Robles.  The beautiful nose is made up of cherries and cranberries and follows through with a very fruit forward, elegant mouth feel. The finish is long with a touch of fortified wine that lightly warms your mouth. This wine pairs great with your favorite dessert, Dark chocolate raspberry truffles, or a cigar (if you like them, of course).

Production: 70 cases   

We bought a bottle. Very nice!

AlmaSol_Almazan1

It is really nice to see more tasting rooms open in the Thousand Oaks area. Alma Sol is a great addition to the local line up – I look forward to seeing how John and Lisa continue to develop as winemakers.