ABOUT THE SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS SUN, WIND & WINE FESTIVAL
This is part 2 of my coverage of the Santa Lucia Highlands Sun, Wind & Wine Festival at Mer Soleil winery. You can read part 1 here: Sun Wind Wine: A Santa Lucia Highlands Extravaganza Part 1.
THE WINES – THE PRESS/TRADE PASS GOT US IN EARLY! Thank you!!
Many thanks one more time to the Santa Lucia Highlands Wine Artisans for providing media passes to Decanting Monterey. We are grateful for the opportunity.
Today I am wrapping up this Santa Lucia Highlands Extravaganza by presenting some local wineries, some we have visited before. I’m skipping adding the AVA and county in these listings as they are all except one from the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA, Monterey County. As a practice, I do not correct typos from winery websites. Notetaking was minimal, but I will do my best to present some of the wines, impressions and experiences we had at this event.
Let’s go!
TASTING OUR LOCAL WINES AT THIS SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS EXTRAVAGANZA
INTEGRITY WINES:
“…Integrity is not just about the wine itself. It’s about everyone who helped create this wine experience. It’s complete when we add you. That’s integrity.” You can read more about Integrity here. I did write up a single Integrity rosé in this post long ago: Integrity: “honest, real, and one of a kind” wines “made for people by people”.
2021 Integrity Riesling $26 (#1348)
Winery Notes: “The 2021 vintage of the Santa Lucia Highlands Riesling from Integrity leans slightly away from the fruit forward Rieslings of California and flirts with a more restrained style. On the nose are notes of flinty Asian pear skins, nectarines, and lemon oil. The palate has a softness to it that is a nice contrast to the acidity of the Riesling. As the wine opens with time, all the aforementioned notes become more pronounced in a way that benefits the consumer…”
My Notes: We found this wine to be light on the palate and slightly sweet. This would be good on a warm day! May 2024
2021 Integrity Pinot Noir, $36 (#1349)
Winery Notes: “The 2021 vintage of the Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir displays the terroir of the Santa Lucia Highlands gracefully. The wine lifts with a bouquet of cinnamon oil, currants, cranberry, and sage. Structurally, the wine has fine tannins that are carried by a soft acidity and concludes with an integrated cedar and light tobacco wrapper coating. Over time the wine opens and becomes more fruit forward and starts to display dynamic notes of violets, rose petals, cardamom, and eucalyptus. The interplay of the tonality makes this wine a joy to drink…”
My Notes: A great mix of several select blocks from the vineyard. Rich on the palate, reflective of the region. May 2024
2019 Integrity Late Harvest Riesling, $28 (#1350)
Winery Notes: “The 2019 Late Harvest Riesling is straw in color with a brilliant translucent rim. Medium-bodied and semi-sweet without feeling weighty, with aromas of candied citrus, fresh jasmine, hints of lychee and quince, with flavors of ripe apricot, orange blossom honey, essence of ginger and rosemary. This wine has balanced acidity.”
My Notes: Very sweet, as expected. May 2024
BELLE GLOS:
“Belle Glos showcases distinctive Pinot Noirs produced from California’s most noteworthy coastal wine-growing regions. While each vineyard location lies near the Pacific Ocean, the climate differences are significant, varying with the amount of fog, wind, sunlight, and soil type at each site. Each Vineyard Designate is crafted to distill the purest essence of the locale into elegant expressions of California Pinot Noir.
“Owner/winemaker, Joe Wagner chose the name Belle Glos (pronounced “BELL GLOSS”) to honor his grandmother, Lorna Belle Glos Wagner. Lorna was a co-founder of Caymus Vineyards, an inspirational figure to Joseph and an avid lover of Pinot Noir.”
2021 Belle Glos Las Alturas Pinot Noir, $55 (#1351)
Winery Notes: “Rich crimson in color with fragrant aromas of blackberry, sage, cherry, and hints of rich dark chocolate. Bold and elegant on the palate with boysenberry pie, black currant jam, dark plum, and subtle notes of ground nutmeg. Balanced and structured, this wine has beautiful acidity that lingers through to a long, mouthwatering finish.”
My Notes: This is the first Belle Glos wine I have tasted. I found this to be a good Pinot Noir from a high altitude in the Santa Lucia Highlands – very reflective of the region. I need to learn more about their wines. May 2024
TONDRÉ WINES:
“Tondré Wines began with a desire to produce the best possible wine for family and friends from fruit grown on the Alarid Family Home Ranch. Today, the Alarid family is happy and proud to share their limited production Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines to even the most discriminating wine connoisseur. Their award-winning wines continue to be produced exclusively with estate fruit grown on Tondré Grapefield in the heart of the renowned Santa Lucia Highlands, Monterey County.
“You are invited to experience truly artisanal wines that offer vibrant, elegant colors; deeply fragrant aromas; varietal purity on the palate and a velvety, lingering finish.”
2020 Tondré Chardonnay Tondré Grapefield (#1352)
Winery Notes: “The 2020 Vintage Chardonnay turned out to be a complicated year due to the wildfires in California. Although the smoke impacted the red grapes, it posed less of an issue for the whites. The reason being, they are not fermented on the skins the way Pinot Noir and other reds are. In years like these, great care is taken at this stage to prevent any smoke impact from affecting the juice. When the grapes are loaded into the press, they are pressed several times at a low pressure to extract every last ounce; a technique used by large wineries focused on volume rather than quality. Once pressed, our 2020 Vintage Chardonnay was entirely tank-fermented to show off the natural fruitiness. The resulting wine speaks for itself. It has the usual crisp apple notes with a hint of tropical fruit and the creaminess from the champagne yeast used during fermentation. This process helps to counter-balance the refreshing natural acidity.”
My Notes: Lots of minerality from one of the coveted vineyards in SLH! May 2024
2016 Tondré Pinot Noir, Tondré Grapefield (#1353)
Winery Notes: “The 2016 Vintage Pinot Noir shows an array of red and black cherry fruit, assorted ripe berries, nutmeg, and that wonderful Santa Lucia Highlands AVA spiciness that resembles dried herbs, potpourri and earthy forest floor. The palate is soft and plush with balanced acidity and moderate tannin. The tight grained oak used in aging graces the finish with a subtle note of cinnamon.”
My Notes: This was quite late in the tasting, so my sparse notes aren’t really fair – very representative of the region. I was quite distracted in conversation with one of the owners. May 2024
2021 Tondre Pinot Noir, Tondré Grapefield (#1354)
Winery Notes: “The 2021 vintage Pinot Noir offers a captivating display of luscious red and black cherry fruit, skillfully intermingled with a delightful blend of assorted spices that perfectly embodies the essence of Tondré Grapefield and the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. The palate offers a velvety texture that exudes elegance. It’s acidity is balanced complementing the moderate tannins to perfection.”
TESTAROSSA WINERY:
“Testarossa Winery is a producer of premier California Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Like all great start-ups, Testarossa Winery was started in 1993 in Rob and Diana Jensen’s Silicon Valley garage. Since then it has grown to national prominence, garnering more than 1,700 scores of 90+ points by renowned wine critics.” I have not had the chance to taste Testarossa wines since they closed their tasting room in Carmel Valley Village.
2021 Testarossa Chardonnay, Fogstone Vineyard, 14.3% ABV, $55 (#1355)
Winery Notes: “Straw hue. Nice aromas of brioche, honey, passionfruit and white peach leap out of the glass. With some time, notes of nectarine, apricot jam, and apple pie round out the nose. Upon taste, flavors of apple pie and apricot jam lead into a texture that is dense, yet decadent. This Chardonnay finishes full, intense, and with a smooth touch. Enjoy now through 2031.”
My Notes: A classic SLH, buttery Chardonnay. May 2024
2021 Testarossa Pinot Noir, Fogstone Vineyard, 14.1% ABV, $76 (#1356)
Wine Enthusiast – 92 points: “Roasted red cherry aromas meet with dried meat and sage on the nose of this single-vineyard expression. The palate’s snappy and fresh red fruits are lifted by mace and a pinch of chaparral herbs.” — Matt Kettmann
My Notes: I am not 100% sure that the display wine was the same one we tasted, as the website says the 2021 is sold out. That said, this Pinot Noir has some heft to it – tasty. May 2024
CRŪ WINERY:
“Deeply rooted in family & friends, CRŪ Winery sources fruit from some of the finest vineyards throughout the Central Coast of California. With a focus on Burgundian and Rhone varietals such as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah – which are best suited to this region, we craft wines for quality everyday drinking.”
We also tasted a CRŪ Chardonnay, but I am not sure which one, so I have to skip it in today’s write it up!
2021 CRŪ Clone 777 Pinot Noir, Sarmento Vineyard, 15% ABV, $70 (#1357)
Winery Notes: “Every few vintages a special clone will stand out to our winemaking team and they will decide to bottle it on its own. Clone 777 from the Sarmento Vineyard is one of those wines. The wine starts with notes of raspberries, cherry and spicy tones of nutmeg and coriander before the full warm and rich mouthful of black cherry, cranberries, strawberry and spice that leads to its long and elegant finish with hints of cinnamon and hazelnut.” 95 points, Wine Enthusiast
My Notes: This wine was tasted very late in the event – earthy nose, classic palate. May 2024
KORi Wines:
“KORi Wines is the partnership between Santa Lucia Highlands grape/citrus grower Kirk Williams & his step-daughter Kori Violini. Kirk planted the first vines in 1998, and in 2007, they launched the initial KORi Wines Pinot Noir from the KW Ranch Vineyard. Sabrine Rodems has been the winemaker since 2010. In 2018, with much enthusiasm, they opened a tasting room in Carmel-by-the-Sea and offer a full assortment of wines, including Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Rosé, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sparkling Blanc de Blancs, and of course, Pinot Noir.” From https://montereywines.org/wineries/kori-wines/
2022 KORi Rosé, 13% ABV, $27 (#1358)
My Notes: Good fruit flavor, lean and a touch bitter. We had to warm this up – was served too cold. May 2024
2022 KORi Sauvignon Blanc, Griva Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, 13% ABV, $27 (#1359)
Winery Notes: “UNIQUELY ARROYO SECO…Guava. Lychee. Melon. Lemon Cream.”
My Notes: I’m a big fan of wines from the Griva Vineyard. This wine exhibited something mellow – a bit different from the typical Arroyo Seco Sauvignon Blanc. This is the one wine we tasted from outside the SLH designation. May 2024
2020 KORi Pinot Noir, KW Ranch Vineyard, 14.3% ABV, $49 (#1360)
Wine Enthusiast – 88 points: “From a vintage that many others skipped due to nearby wildfires, this bottling shows baked cherry and prominent oak aromas on the nose. The palate is quite extracted and thick with clone and nutmeg spices enhancing the very ripe fruits.” — Matt Kettmann
My Notes: Very late in the tasting, I got perfume on the nose. I find the fruit from KW Ranch to be some of the best for Pinot Noir and Syrah. May 2024
2019 KORi Syrah, KW Ranch, 14%, $42 (#650)
Winery Notes: “Dark fruit and white pepper.”
My Notes: Earthy. Dark ruby in the glass. Berries on the nose. Smooth on the palate with notes of berry jam and chocolate. February 2022/May 2024
THE TASTING ROOMS
I recommend visiting each winery’s website for more information about their tasting options!
© Decanting Monterey 2023
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