As K&L Wine MerchantsInsiders, we often get access to wines at special prices. My better half’s approach to wine buying is to hunt for highly rated wines at a discount – or wine otherwise not available. That’s how we acquired today’s wine.
About Jonata: “Dedicated to expressing a range of red—and a handful of white—wines from its estate in the Central Coast of California’s Ballard Canyon appellation within Santa Ynez Valley, Jonata is one of a new breed of producers throughout the world who are thriving with a non-traditional amalgam of varieties and blends. With a commitment in particular to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, and informed by cutting edge viticulture, winemaking and a polyface approach to their estate, the Jonata wines are on the vanguard of an emerging quality movement in California winegrowing.”
THE WINE
Today, I am presenting just 1 Jonata wine. Winery notes come from the label, their tasting sheet or their website, unless otherwise noted. Any errors are mine and mine alone; however, as a general rule, I do not correct any typos from the winery’s website.
2019 Jonata Todos “Everyone” Red Wine Vineyard Blend, Ballard Canyon AVA, Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara County, 14.5% ABV, $50 (#1510) 48% Syrah, 26% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petite Sirah, 9% Merlot, 2% Sangiovese, 5% Misc. others (white and red)
Winery Notes: “Incense and Nag Champa fragrance. Bidis. Clove and cigar and black and red licorice. Dark and brooding with sweet blackberries, blueberries, cinnamon and baking spice. Black figs. Cracked white pepper. Like 2013 Todos in its power and breadth. Salty and tight today. Spicy and dark. Lovely depth of fruit. Tannins that start to build on the 3/4 pallet and slowly coat the entire mouth. Bundle of fruit wrapped in a formidable package of complex structure. Will reward those who decant and those who give it a few years in the cellar. One of my favorite Todos to date, no doubt.” Matt Dees, Winemaker
Ryan Woodhouse, K&L Buyer: “Every year this wine gives a great insight to the phenomenal wines of Jonata Estate (which just so happens to be the SoCal sister property to Screaming Eagle in Napa). The 2019 Todos is simply spectacular and truly gives the high-end bottling from Jonata a run for their money in every way. Built around a powerful, muscular core of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine is masterfully composed to include at least a small amount of everything grown on the estate giving a truly panoramic expression of a given vintage. Jonata’s Matt Dees is well know as one of the most talented winemakers of his generation with many 100-point wines to his name, and a plethora of the best vineyard sites across Santa Barbara County at his disposal. Jonata’s estate in Ballard Canyon is incredible – intricate blocks of vines put down deep roots in the pure sand soils. The fruit from here is immensely concentrated and presents heightened aromatics and fine-grained tannins. The 19 Todos is redolent with woodsy spices, black raspberry, bramble fruit, charred meat with rubbing spices, some redcurrant paste, bay laurel, crushed rock mineral, subtle oak spices frame the complex mélange of spicy, brambly, smokey fruit. Reminiscent of something from the northern Rhone, but with a little more density and hints of singed cedar from the Cabernet. Such a fascinating and layered wine. I’m also certain this wine has 10+ years of positive development, and probably 20+ years of excellent drinking ahead of it. A very serious wine for a very modest price point.”
Wine Enthusiast – 97 points: “Winemaker Matt Dees is considered one of the best winemakers anywhere, and this blend is ample reason to believe the hype. Intense, focused and dry but rich aromas of dark fruit, roasted wood, crushed rocks and wild herb enliven the nose, while the palate is weighty yet expertly tense. Flavors of dried red fruit, peppery spice and milk chocolate float into the finish.” — Matt Kettmann, March 2023
My Review: Inky in the glass. Concord grape, dark plum and red fruit notes on the nose. Brambly, dark fruit on the palate. A bit dark and brooding with a touch – just a touch of sweetness. Very smooth. Easy drinking. We enjoyed this wine. November 2024
“JONATA wine experiences are offered at our sister winery The Hilt Estate in their new tasting room The Barn. The Hilt Estate is a dramatic property located within a 30 minute drive west of JONATA in Santa Barbara County’s Sta. Rita Hills AVA. Located just miles from the Pacific Ocean near the intersection of the historic Highway 1 and Santa Rosa Road, The Barn at The Hilt Estate is ideally situated as the starting or ending point for a Santa Barbara wine trip.
“With wines from two renowned estates—JONATA and The Hilt—The Barn at The Hilt Estate offers one of the most diverse lineups of wine in Santa Barbara County. From highly acclaimed pinot noirs and chardonnays from The Hilt to JONATA’s sought after Bordeaux varietals such as cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and Rhône varietal syrah, there is something for every palate.”
When we were first approached by Anna Marie Dos Remedios, co-owner and winemaker at Idle Hour Winery & Kitchen, about going on some wine adventures in Croatia, I got pretty excited. We had a marvelous experience with Expanding Horizons once before and Croatia has looked so beautiful from the pictures of many friends. Plus, fun fact: I studied Serbo-Croatian literature in college! So I am stepping away from California’s Central Coast for the next 2 weeks to talk about another country’s coastal wines!
I didn’t know much about Croatian wines, but we were so pleasantly surprised by the quality and diversity of the exceptional wine experiences we encountered during our two-week trip. We spent one week traveling by bus to the Plešivica wine region, the Plitvice Lakes National Park, and the Istrian Peninsula before making our way down the coast to Zadar and Split. From there, we boarded the Aurelia, our private Katerina Linesyacht, island hopping to Hvar, Vis, Korčula, back to the mainland at Slano, and finally ending up in Dubrovnik.
Although we got to know Croatian wines during our trip, but we got to know them them fairly well during our visit. I’m bound to get lots of facts wrong as I try to talk about our experiences and the wines. My reviews have at times been colorfully supplemented by our traveling partners, whom I have named the Decanting-Monterey-in-Croatia Wine Pod. 😊
Some of the standout varietals included the white grapes of Malvazija Istarka and Graševina, and the red grapes of Teran and Plavac Mali. The delicious red grape Plavac Mali (“little blue”) was long considered to be related to Zinfandel, but in fact, Kastelanski Crljenak, and Tribidrag are the true DNA relatives of California Zinfandel. You can read more on this controversy HERE.
Sadly, we learned that many Croatian wines are not exported to the US and it seems the wineries do not directly ship here. Thank you, COVID. There are a couple of overseas websites where you can order directly, but they will have to add on about $20/bottle for shipping and US customs! But, if you hunt hard enough (I did!), you will find several US wine shops that carry and ship Croatian wines, thus saving you some of the added cost. Be sure to read next week’s post whereI’ll tell you all about it!
I’ll be breaking this experience into 3 posts: Wines we consumed while on the mainland, ones we tasted after we got on the yacht, and the Idle Hour wines from California we tasted throughout our adventure. I will include links to the wineries where I can find them. To save space, I’ll try to provide links where you can find the winery descriptions of their wines. ZOI is the abbreviation for Zaštićena oznaka izvornoti (Protected mark originality – the wine region it is from). I found this informative map of the major Croatian wine regions on Wine Folly:
Here we go!
WINE ADVENTURES IN CROATIA – BY LAND
ZAGREB
Our friends who joined us on this trip had traveled far and wide to end up in Zagreb the Le Premier Hotel. Since none of us live close to each other, we decided to meet up in the hotel bar for a kick-off celebration before dinner.
My Review: Inky in the glass. Crushed berries on the nose. Dark flavors on the palate with prune and stem notes. Smooth tannins on the finish. A very dark wine. May 2024
2019 Matuško Dingač, ZOI Peljesac Peninsula, Central and South Dalmatia, 14.5% ABV $21 (#1363)
2019 Matuško Dingač
My Review: Berries including strawberry on the nose. This wine elicited a “wow” from our table. Tons of heavy dark fruit, vanilla and maple on the finish. Has some dessert wine qualities – in a good way. Tastes high alcohol. May 2024
My Review: Pale in the glass. Lychee on the nose. A touch of sweetness and vaguely citrusy on the palate. Not cloying and presented slightly fizzy. Could be more acidic and colder. May 2024
KORAK FAMILY ESTATE
Our first winery visit was Korak Family Estate, outside of Zagreb along the Pleševice Wine Road. They make elegant Burgundian varietals which can be sampled along with a Michelin Star lunch! That was such a great start to our trip. The setting was lovely and the small winery produced delicious wines. I would highly recommend this experience if you are near Zagreb. You can find winery notes for these wines here.
My Review: Fine bubbles crisp and delicious. Graphite, mineral, not a lot of distinctive flavor. Served with sourdough bread, sourdough bread chips, fresh cheese, butter and cured meat. May 2024
My Review: Pale golden. A slightly sweet nose of pear and honeysuckle. Surprisingly acidic. Made in a style to be very fresh. As it warmed up, lemon curd. The wine was nicely paired with a green bean/prosciutto dish with a bitter orange cream sauce. May 2024
My Review: Golden and viscous in the glass. Candied pineapple, melon, pear, and oak on the fresh nose. Lemon-infused butterscotch. Sweet pineapple and pop rocks on the palate with a long finish. A lot going on. Very tasty. Our favorite so far. Served with black tortellini filled with fresh ricotta with sliced dried garlic and peppered with truffles. May 2024
My Review: Light cherry and rose petal with a hint of cinnamon, vanilla and clove on the nose. A palate of light cherry and red berries with a peppery/cinnamon dry finish accompanied by soft tannins. Accompanied by smoked and roasted squab breast with horseradish and spices plum and onion chutney. May 2024
My Review: Pale in the glass. Wet grass on the nose. Freshly mowed grass on the palate. Spritzy on the palate. Close to a Prosecco. May 2024
2023 Stina Pošip, ZOI Central & South Dalmatia, 13.5% ABV, $40 (#1373)
My Review: The label on this wine is like white on white stone. The only notes I took were that it has a lemony finish. May 2024
2023 Terdzo Malvazija Istarka (#1374)
My Review: Yellow in color. Smells like a Viognier. Slightly sweet in aroma and on the palate with lemon notes. Viscous in the glass and on the tongue. Reminded us of a Rhône wine. May 2024
My Review: Oak and vanilla on the nose. Dark fruit including plum and violet. Made on island Krk. I loved this wine. Very young for us to be drinking. The sommelier said lots of tannin, but I think it is drinking fine. May 2024
Our second winery visit was at the Tomaz winery, at the base of the hilltop village of Motovun.
About Tomaz: “FRAMELESS WINES: On heavy, loamy, and marly soils in the unique climate of the Mirna river, the Tomaz family cultivates vines in harmony. Motovun, well-known for its truffles and Motovun forest, is the birthplace of these unique works of art, the frameless wines.”
We tasted only the Croatian varietals of Malvazija and Teran, which they grow on their estate. They also purchase grapes from others to make other wines. You can find winery notes on their website and on Croatia Reveled – Tomaz. If you want to order Tomaz (or other wines) through Croatia Revealed, the process is to send them an email at info@croatiarevealed.com. As mentioned above, it costs about $20/bottle to process through shipping and US Customs!!
My Review: Almost a pale orange in the glass. Faint orange on the nose like a sweet orange hard candy. A tiny bit of effervescence on the tongue. Sweet on the palate with a lemony pop finish. Food pairings smooth out the tartness. May 2024
My Review: Light yellow in the glass. Orange blossom and minerality on the nose. Yu can taste the influence of the Adriatic carried by a light wind and the Istrian mountain air mixing with the grapes to create a sensuous swirl on the palate. It is in and of its place. Some residual sugars. A little bit of a sherry taste to it. Would pair well with fish. May 2024
2020 Tomaz Sesto Senso Malvazija Istarka, ZOI Hrvatska Istra, 13.5% ABV, $24 (#1378)
My Review: 6 months in French oak and 6 months in Istrian oak. Yellow in color. Bananas and a little grilled pineapple on the nose. Sour dates and honey on the viscous palate. Very flavorful. May 2024
My Review: 12 months in French oak. Beautiful in the glass – purple. Velvet. Perfume, Moroccan spices, black plum and jammy berries and alcohol on the nose. the initial jammy berries (Goji berries) are sandpapered away by the hidden tannins, finishing with a ton of cinnamon. Needs more time in the bottle. May 2024
My Review: Diluted honey and elderflower on the nose. For a semisweet wine, this one is not cloying at all. It has enough acid to make it appear dry amongst the sweetness. May 2024
SPLIT
Our last night on land was in the beautiful city of Split, where we stayed in the Jupiter Luxury Hotel inside Diocletian’s Palace, a UNESCO Heritage Site. If that wasn’t special enough, we stumbled into a perfect little restaurant only steps from the hotel, where we became fond of the grape Plavac Mali.
2019 Volarević Syrtis Plavac Mali, ZOI Central & South Dalmatia, 15.5% ABV, $15/$35 US (#1381)
My Review: Rich garnet in color. Cherry licorice and vanilla on the nose. Dark cherry, cedar, and a burst of bright jam on the tannic finish. They say if you like California Zinfandel, Croatian Plavac Mali will ring your chimes. We really liked this wine. May 2024
I’ve actually found this wine available for sale in the US and am inquiring if we can get it shipped to California. More next week!
*Be sure to read next week’s post with more wine adventures in Croatia – and where to find them from the US!*
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