Having just read a Wine Spectator article about California Chardonnay, I suggested we make it the theme of our August virtual wine group. Members presented wines from all over California, Oregon and Washington, making it one of our more interesting and classes! I wanted to try the 2023 Diatom Chardonnay from Santa Barbara County, which had been selected as Wine Spectator’s #37 of its top 100 California Chardonnays. After hunting in my local stores, I settled for the 2022 vintage instead – which turned out to be a terrific wine!
“Winemaker Greg Brewer’s primary goal and priority is to deliver the essence of the sustainably farmed estate vineyards as clearly and honestly as possible.
“Each specific winery strives to harness our appellations with the utmost transparency in their own unique style. This objective is to offer the most relevant voice of our estates. While the three labels are corralled by my name, their outcome is ultimately the result of our entire Team whose devotion to every step of the process informs, motivates and inspires…”
About Diatom – by Greg Brewer: “Diatom specializes in one variety— Chardonnay— and is motivated by the pursuit of subtraction and refinement.”
THE WINE:
Today I’m bringing you just one wine. Winery notes come from wine.com. Any errors are mine and mine alone.
2022 Diatom Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County, 14.5% ABV, $25 (#1433)
Winemaker’s Notes From wine.com: “The 2022 Diatom Santa Barbara Chardonnay offers aromas of lemon, citrus blossom and wet sand with flavors of saline and white peach on the palate. A precise, balanced wine.”
At that same link, you can find many professional reviews for this wine, rated on average 93 points. Here is one of those reviews:
93 Points – Wine Enthusiast: “Fascinating aromas of Asian pear, lime and white rocks create a cohesive combination on the nose of this bottling by Greg Brewer. The palate is tremendously tense and lively, using crushed seashell and yuzu flavors to offset the tropical hints of guava peel and spicy pepper touches.” — Matt Kettmann
My Review: Pale yellow in the glass. A big nose of white peach, honeysuckle, lemon and burnt matchstick, with a hint of pineapple. The full-bodied, ripe fruit palate includes lemon zest and lemon curd. This wine when first opened was lemon, lemon, lemon, but as it warmed slightly and opened up, it became this full-bodied beauty. Very different from our typical Monterey County Chardonnays! We enjoyed this wine all week! A bargain at $25. August 2024
“Our tasting room is located in the town of Los Olivos, California just 45 minutes north of Santa Barbara. We are open by reservation only in order to maximize each guest’s experience.
HOURS OF OPERATION Open Seven Days a Week 10am – 4pm By Reservation Only
ADDRESS – 2367 Alamo Pintado Ave, Los Olivos, CA 93441
Time for a short, Monterey Catch Up Post of wines we have enjoyed at home!
THE WINES:
Today I’m bringing you a little Monterey catchup post on 4 wines, 2 new ones and 2 revisits! The Lucy Rosé of Pinot Noir we found in our fridge and enjoyed on one of those rare, warm June coastal days. I picked up the Galante Vineyards Merlot at a tasting there long ago – but did not get to sample it until this past winter (amazing what we find hidden in our wine room!). We picked up the Pierce Ranch Vineyards Claret as they were closing their Cannery Row tasting room (they are open at their winery – see below!). Finally, we enjoy re-tasting Carmel Valley wines from the 2016 Soberanes Fire year to see how they are holding up. The ParsonageTanner Reserve is one which, through creative winemaking, I still don’t detect even a hint of the smoke – it is drinking beautifully.
Winery notes come from their website, newsletters or tasting room. Any errors are mine and mine alone.
2022 Lucy Rosé of Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands AVA, Monterey County, 13.5% ABV, $24 (#1431)
Winery Notes: “If the Lucy Rosé of Pinot Noir offers any preview into the quality of the coming wines for a given vintage, rest assured that 2022 will certainly be a vintage to remember. Sporting shades of melon, salmon, and coral that are classic for a Lucy Rosé, this beautiful offering packs unyielding aromatic intensity as it chills and condensates on the sides of the glass. Delicate at first with notes of fresh strawberry and subtle, mineral driven undertones, this wine begins to offer complexities seldom seen in rosé as it opens up in the glass. Plush notes of peach blossom and watermelon waft into the air, as the first sips offer citrus-driven flavors of tangerine and orange peel, backed by tart raspberry and rose petal. Brief but impactful aging in 100% neutral French oak barrels offer an added layer of texture that pairs seamlessly with fresh acidity.”
“The Pisoni Family has always been committed to making exceptional wines, and Lucy allows them to combine this passion with philanthropy. The Pisoni family donates one dollar of each bottle sold to Breast Cancer Research. Since inception, over $200,000 has been raised for this cause.”
My 2024 Review: Pale salmon in the glass. Peach and apricot with strawberry notes on the nose. Kind of tart on the palate like underripe strawberries and raspberries. Refreshing. Complexity is revealed as wine warms in the glass. More than a pool wine. June 2024
2018 Galante Merlot, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 13.5% ABV, $100 (#1432)
Winery Notes “This Wine Gang favorite is EXTREMELY limited – only 50 cases produced – and as you all know, it always sells out quickly. Lush, ripe strawberry and toasted vanilla flavors abound in this classic Merlot.
My Review: Dark garnet in the glass – like a juicy, dark cherry. Dark fruit and a touch of vanilla on the nose. Sweet tart on the palate with an undercurrent of dark berries and plum. Cherry on the finish. March 2024
2016 Pierce Ranch Vineyards Claret, San Antonio Valley AVA, Monterey County, 13.8% ABV, $28 (#142)
Winery Notes: “…Benefiting from the region’s high elevation, rocky soils, and wide variation in diurnal temperature, the 2016 vintage is a nuanced, well-balanced wine with an elegant texture, restrained fruit, and a solid tannic structure. Produced on a very limited scale, its components were fermented in small lots and aged in French oak for 18 months. Flavors and aromas of red cherry, black currant, and plum combine with hints of cedar and tobacco leaf.”
My 2024 Review: Cranberry, blackberry, plum and musky herbal on the nose. White pepper, black raspberry and currant with grapefruit notes on the finish. December 2023
My 2020 Review: Raspberry and blackberry on the nose. Raspberry, tart cherry and plum on the palate, with a smooth, licorice finish. This is a very tasty, everyday Claret. May 2020
Winery Notes: “This Cabernet Sauvignon is a burly beast of a wine and the fastest selling vintage we’ve ever made. When folks try it, they buy it. The nose is full of dark fruit with hints of barrel toast. The palate is full of blackberry, black cherry, and tobacco leaf. Nicely integrated tannins and a long finish. We aren’t fancy and like to pair it with a burger.” 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.
My 2024 Review: Medium purple in color. Crushed blackberry and cherry and brewed coffee, with a hint of sulfur, on the nose. Melange of berries and spearmint on the plate with a dry, wooden finish with lingering licorice notes. Blind tasting this wine, you wouldn’t know it was from the year of the Soberanes Fire.
My 2020 Review: Glass-coating rich, this wine had a little sulphur and green olive on the nose, followed by umami flavors of pepperoni dipped in a good marinade. Very robust and delicious Cabernet Sauvignon. Little to no detection of smoke taint, despite the 2016 vintage. June 2020
Galante Vineyards: Come visit our Wine Tasting Room and Western Emporium in beautiful Carmel-by-the-Sea. Located off Dolores between Ocean and Seventh Ave., Galante Vineyards is proud to be Carmel’s first “Wine Tasting Room”. We cordially invite you and your guests to stop by to say “howdy” and to taste our renowned estate wines.
“Our tasting room is located in Carmel-by-the-Sea off Dolores between Ocean Street and Seventh Ave. We are currently open DAILY for outdoor tastings: Monday-Thursday 12:30-6:30pm, Friday & Saturday 12:00-7:30pm, Sunday 12:00-6:30pm”
Pierce Ranch Vineyards : “We are now hosting regular tasting hours at the winery in Lockwood every Saturday from 12:00 to 4:00 pm…The official winery address is 53527 Bradley-Lockwood Road, Bradley, CA 93426. (We know. Apparently whether or not we’re actually in Lockwood is a matter of interpretation. It might be a quantum thing.) If you need directions or if you have questions, feel free to contact us at tastingroom@piercevineyards.com. We’ll see/observe you there.”
Parsonage: “Carmel Valley Wine Tasting Room: Hooray! We are open for both indoor and outdoor wine tasting daily. Hours: Monday – Friday: noon to 5pm, Saturday & Sunday: 11am to 5pm. Last seating for wine tasting: 4:15pm. Reservations can be made here or by phone. Please call us at 831-659-7322 for same day reservations.”
My favorite widely-attended wine event in Monterey County happened on August 24th – the Monterey Winemakers Celebration! I like this event because these are “our” local wineries – the ones we can drive to and the tasting rooms we frequent. And this time the Monterey County Vintners and Growers Association was very generous to me and comped me VIP tickets! My chance to taste some of the special wines before everyone else shows up – excellent. A huge THANK YOU for your generosity!
And we could not have had better weather for the Winemakers Celebration – it was warm and sunny – not something you can bank on in August on the Monterey Peninsula! And how fun to see so many of our winemakers in attendance including Sabrine Rodems, Ian Brand, Jack Galante,Greg Freeman, Greg Hill, Russell Joyce, and Keith Prader.
In today’s post, I’ll walk you through some of the wines we tasted – but then hone in on specific noteworthy wines.
“Join us in Carmel-by-the-Sea for the Monterey Winemakers Celebration, now in its 31st year! This year, the event has moved to late August to celebrate the beginning of the 2024 harvest. Celebrate with winemakers and growers from one of the world’s premier wine regions at this beloved street festival on Saturday, August 24, on Dolores Street (between Ocean and 7th) and 7th Street (between Dolores and San Carlos).
Please click on the event link to see all of the wineries and eateries who were there to make this a fun event!
THE EVENT ITSELF– Winemakers Celebration
My Strategy: My usual strategy at the Winemakers Celebration is to focus on wineries that were new or ones I had never presented in my blog, sample one wine, and dump the rest. But only one winery that fit that category, so we went looking for the special reserve wines! However – with a twist – my partner wanted to go through once only tasting rosé and white wines and to leave the reds for the trip back through. It was an incredibly warm day, but it meant more wines and smaller tastes to come out even!
And a few whites: Dawn’s Dream2023 Chardonnay had a buttery nose with honey and tropical notes on the palate. Scheid Vineyards 2023 Sauvignon Blanc was pale in glass with melon and pineapple on the palate – a good wine. Plus Rexford Winery’s flavorful 2022 Tondre Grapefield Dry Riesling and nicely balanced 2019 Escolle Chardonnay. Lucy Wines (by Pisoni) had an interesting 2023 blend named Pico Blanco (Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc) which was light yellow and tropical on the palate. And JL Wood Wines was back with its line of Chardonnays from Arroyo Seco – the 2022 Premier was buttery and balanced.
And then we capped off the Winemakers Celebration by tasting every single one of Shale Canyon Wines reds: 2017 Mourvèdre, 2019 GSM, 2017 Tempranillo, and we even got to taste the club-only 2019 Consortium! At that point, we were invited to the winery to help them bottle wines later in the fall. Why not?
THE CULINARY DELIGHTS– Winemakers Celebration
Before I get to today’s wines, I just wanted to mention a couple of eateries which stood out to us. We did not try them all, but we especially enjoyed the Cafe Guaraniempanadas and the The Grill on Ocean Ave. flaky triangles with artichoke dip.
THE WINES– Winemakers Celebration
As I did with the last Monterey Wine Trade Event, today I want to highlight a few standout wines from wineries I rarely or have never covered in this blog. I did not capture detailed tasting notes at the Winemakers Celebration, so I’ve cobbled together my notes from memory. Any errors are mine and mine alone.
David Baird, winemaker at Folktale, started this label as a personal effort to make a difference for the special needs community. I encourage you to read the moving story about Common Thread Wines here: It all began in a moment.
“…My winemaking career began in 2006 while attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. I’ve had the pleasure of working for some of the best winemakers in the Central Coast of California and honing my craft and style along the way. A goal of mine was to someday create wines of my own, but timing was never right. That all changed in 2021 when finally gaining the courage to take a risk and begin a wine brand of my own, and Common Thread was born. The name comes from a similar trait I share with my two boys – a single palmar crease on our left hands. This crease is one of the physical markers of Down syndrome, along with almond shaped eyes, stunted growth, etc. It is not an indication of any mutation, and can be an uncommon inherited trait that is often passed down among males. I’m proud to share this special trait with my two boys, and is my Common Thread.
“A large part of my desire to make wine is getting an opportunity to give back to the community in a meaningful way. I’m proud to donate 10% of proceeds to organizations that support individuals with special needs. Those individuals share a common thread with my son, and all deserve to live life to the fullest.”
2023 Common Thread Brut Rose, Central Coast AVA, 12.7% ABV, $34 (#1427) 66% Pinot Meunier, 21% Chardonnay, 13% Pinot Noir
Winemaker’s Notes: “Originally associated with royalty and wine for the gods, sparkling wine has always been made with love and care. This bottle honors the past, with a bottling of the classic varieies in traditional sparkling wine and the Méthode Champenoise. Depending on your preferences, pair this with caviar or popcorn on the couch. The individual components were hand-picked and gently pressed. The individual components fermented in Stainless-Steel before being blended and bottled for the secondary fermentation. The bottles were riddled by hand and disgorged in the fall of 2024.”
My Notes: A little cloudy in glass and very tasty. Unlike many of the bubblies at this event which were all bubbles and, if you were lucky, a touch of yeasty notes, this one actually tasted like something. I’d serve to guests. We circled back to tell him that it was our favorite sparkling wine of the event! August 2024
“De Tierra Vineyards is a family owned and operated winery producing handcrafted, award-winning wines from the California Central Coast. Owners, Jeff Meacham and Andrew Schoenfeld are dedicated to the rich history and traditions of De Tierra. “We are very fortunate for our continued close partnership with the Russell Vineyards where De Tierra’s founder planted our first varietals in 1998. The Vineyard’s location affords us favorable and unique soils lending to our consistent premium wines of superb quality. Jeff and Andrew continue De Tierra’s commitment to producing superior quality boutique wines.”
2021 De Tierra Rosé of Pinot Noir, Central Coast AVA, 14.2% ABV, $35 (#1428)
Winemaker’s Notes: “Won SILVER MEDAL at the California State Commercial Wine Competition 2023!…IN THE GLASS: Watermelon and silver tones. Fresh and bright…”
My Notes: This was one of the most flavorful rosé wines we tasted this afternoon.
This was the first time Lyndon Fog Cellars participated in this event. They are a joint venture by Laurel Livingston and Glen Caughell. She works for Ian Brand and he also works in the wine industry. They brought several wines for us to sample, including a fun “Chillable Red.” But, when she told me her Syrah grapes came from Zabala Vineyards, I needed to try no others!
2023 Lyndon Fog Syrah, Zabala Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County (#1429)
My notes: Cinnamon candy on the nose, followed by that lovely Zabala Syrah fruit. I need to get some! August 2024
“Pessagno Winery brings to life a family’s 20-year dream of producing exclusive wines from prestigious vineyards throughout the Monterey and San Benito Counties. Winemaker Stephan Pessagno left behind a legacy of extravagance for all in the industry to enjoy. His deep rooted passion and devotion elevated the Pessagno name to what it is today… Franscioni’s team of winemakers welcome all wine lovers to indulge in their exclusive product. They capture the natural flavors of the San Lucia Highlands among other local regions to give Pessagno wines their unique flavor. Come savor the tastes and aromas of our luxurious wines…”
2016 Pessagno Quattro Red Blend, Pedregal de Paicines Vineyard, Paicines AVA, San Benito County, $40 (#1430)
Winery Notes: “Four Varietal Blend of 37.5% Cabernet Franc, 37.5% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Malbec. The 2016 Quattro entices with rich aromas of spice, tobacco, oak and dark cherry. The palate is rewarded with a rich and velvety mouthfeel, flavors of leather, intense dark cherry, and hints of spice and vanilla, with a long, satisfying finish.”
My Notes: The Pessagno Quattro was one of best fruit forward red blends we tasted at this event. I would present this wine in one of my classes! August 2024
THE TASTING ROOMS
Only two of these wineries have tasting rooms. Please contact the others directly for more information.
The De Tierra Tasting Room is located at Mission and 5th in charmingCarmel-by-the-Sea.
“De Tierra provides a one of a kind tasting room experience in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Just 1½ blocks off Ocean Ave., our tasting room is located in a cozy cottage that opens up to the sights and sounds of downtown. Come visit us and experience our extensive wine portfolio which features many single varietal wines, unique blends, sparkling and dessert wines. Make it a perfect match with our available locally sourced small bites.
“The Tasting Room at De Tierra Vineyards is open to the public Mon-Thr: 1pm-6pm and Fri-Sun: 1pm -7pm. Reservations are not needed, but are encouraged. We are family and dog friendly. We can’t wait to see you at the Tasting Room – we know you’ll love it here.”
The Pessagno Tasting Room is located at 1645 River Road, Salinas, CA 93908, on the Monterey Wine Trail!
“WE’RE OPEN FOR TASTINGS – WITH AMPLE COVERED & HEATED OUTDOOR SEATING!
“We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued support over the past several years. We are delighted to welcome you for on-site tastings and look forward to seeing you soon! Reservations are recommended. Please call 831-675-9463 or email info@pessagnowines.com for our River Road Winery & Tasting Room.
“Current Hours. We are currently operating with Spring Hours and are open Thursday-Monday, from 12-5pm; closed Tuesday and Wednesday.”
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