THE STORY
Last week I brought you Part 1 of my coverage of the August 12th Arroyo Seco Winegrowers celebration here: Let’s Have a Big Party to Celebrate Arroyo Seco Winegrowers. Please take a look at that write-up for more information about the Arroyo Seco AVA and the event. Today’s post brings you the rest of the wineries and their wines: Martin Ranch Winery, Chesebro, Bernardus, Blair, J Lohr and Joyce Wine Co. I am grateful to have been able to attend this festive occasion, surrounded by the vineyards we were there to celebrate.
THE WINES
As I indicated last week, despite the small nature of the event, there are always more wines than we can possibly taste and my own note taking was minimal. I am relying on the wineries’ websites for their notes, unless otherwise stated. Any errors are mine and mine alone.
MARTIN RANCH WINERY
This was the first time I had encountered Martin Ranch Winery at one of our local wine events – and I was glad I did. Looking at the range of wines they make, I see a road trip to their Gilroy winery and tasting room in my future!
From their website: “For nearly three decades, winemakers Thérèse and Dan Martin have crafted wines in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The rich history of this husband and wife team is reflected in each bottle of wine, and everything they do…
“In 1993, Thérèse and Dan Martin began planting rows of Cabernet Sauvignon along their 17 acre property, with the intent of selling their fruit to local wineries. Four years later, Thérèse and Dan got the itch to give winemaking a go, and by 2002 they released their first commercial crush of 625 cases.
“That same year, the Martins decided it was time to turn their dream of building a community around a winery into a reality. They embarked on the monumental task of building a commercial winery, including a garden area, pond dock, tasting rooms, barrel room, and production facilities.
“Today our vineyard has rows of Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Nebbiolo, and Pinot Noir, in addition to the original Cabernet Sauvignon vines. Each year we produce wine under our three award-winning labels: J.D. Hurley, Soulmate, and Thérèse Vineyards.”
2020 Martin Ranch Thérèse Vineyards Grenache Blanc, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, 14.2% ABV, $35 (#1135)
88 points – Wine Enthusiast: “Soft nectarine, peach and toasted-oak aromas are cut by Meyer lemon on the nose of this bottling. Ripe apricot and pineapple flavors show on the juicy palate, with oak adding spice.” Matt Kettmann, November 2022
My Notes: My only notes were that this was a little sweet – and spicy!
2018 Martin Ranch Thérèse Vineyards Pinot Noir, Griva Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, 14.6% ABV, $45 (#1136)
91 points – Wine Enthusiast: “Toasty oak aromas meet with dark-cherry compote on the nose of this bottling. The oak is also strong on the palate, but in pleasant ways, warming up the cherry-compote, anise and clove flavors, as vanilla lingers into the finish.” Matt Kettmann
My Notes: Someone told us we should go back and try this wine right as we were heading out for the day. It was quite good and made in a style I prefer – a richer Pinot Noir.
CHESEBRO
I’ve been presenting Chesebro Wines in my DC-area wine classes since my very first one, long before we moved here. I admire Chesebro for their quality and affordability – they are easy to fit into the wine class budgets and are a big hit with the class attendees. I’ve been quoting Mark Chesebro in my presentations for years, yet I had never met the man until this Arroyo Seco celebration! It was great to spend a few minutes with him at long last. Alex Lallos, has been a great supporter of my wine education efforts over the years.
We tasted several new releases at their table, some of which I already covered in this recent post, so I only have one of their wines in this article.
2022 Chesebro Grenache Rosé, Cedar Lane, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $23 (#1137)
Winery Notes: “For lovers of our Grenache rosé, you are in for a real treat. Provençal in style, beautiful light pink in color and bright profile. Aromas of fresh picked strawberry, grapefruit skin and raspberry essence. Perfect for a warm poolside or beach afternoon.”
My Notes: I presented the 2020 vintage of this wine in one of my DC-area classes and I like this new release even better!
BERNARDUS
I most recently wrote about Bernardus in these two posts: Best Winery Tour Ever at Bernardus and Bernardus Rolls Out Red Carpet for Special House Guest! At this event, they were pouring the latest release of their Sauvignon Blanc, which is one of my favorites to put in a class, as well as showcasing a celebration bottle!
2022 Bernardus Sauvignon Blanc, Griva Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $28 (#1138)
Winery Notes: “Our 2022 Signature Griva bottling has aromas of lime zest and grapefruit, accented by mineral nuances. The palate exhibits rich, crisp, tropical fruit flavors with notes of guava, lime peel, blue agave and grapefruit, supported by a refreshing acidity.” 90 points – Wine Enthusiast
BLAIR WINES
We rarely catch Jeffrey Blair himself in his Carmel Plaza tasting room anymore, so it was great to see him here. I’ve written about Blair’s award-winning wines before, with my most recent post here: Blair: It’s All About Delfina’s Vineyard in the Arroyo Seco!I enjoyed trying some of his new releases.
2018 Blair Estate Pinot Gris, Riverbank Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, 14.6% ABV, $35 (#1139)
90 points – Wine Enthusiast: “Hints of orange blossom, kumquat and jasmine show on the nose of this bottling. The palate keeps the wine quite dry, offering wet stone balance to the plumeria and Tuscan melon flavors.” Matt Kettmann
My Review: Sweet Grilled pineapple palate carried over the pineapple with a raw pineapple acidity/bitterness on finish. I liked this wine. August 2023
2018 Blair Estate Chardonnay, Roger Rose Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, 14.1% ABV, $40 (#1140)
91 points – Wine Enthusiast: “Hints of butter, toasted Marcona almond, crushed rock and light truffle show on the nose of this single-vineyard expression. Lemon-butter-glazed-toast flavors meet with sea salt and nuts on the palate, where a rocky edge adds complexity.” Matt Kettmann, April 2022
2021 Blair Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, 13.1% ABV, $25 (#1141)
Winery Notes: “…This Blair Rosé of Pinot Noir is a serious “pink” wine. Our goal was an Old World style that would be bright and refreshing. But also one that would be a versatile companion to a wide variety of foods. The nose and palate is full of ripe strawberry, cherry and watermelon. It finishes crisp and dry. Serve well chilled with a Salade Nicoise or an herbed salmon steak fresh off the grill.” 88 points – Wine Enthusiast
My Notes: Hey this is good tasting wine! Time to get back to Blair for a full tasting!
J. LOHR
We had the chance at the Monterey Trade event the previous week (see this post) to meet J. Lohr’s Kristen Barnhisel, their winemaker for white wines. She wrote the winery notes below. While they produce a million cases of wine every year, we won’t see most of these wines from Arroyo Seco in the supermarkets. 30% of their production is Arroyo Seco whites. 70% of their production comes from Paso Robles. They have tasting rooms in San Jose and Paso Robles. Check out their website for more information.
2022 J. Lohr Pinot Blanc, F&G Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $35 (#1142)
Winery Notes: “The 2022 F&G Vineyard Pinot Blanc displays aromas of yellow rose, apple, and pear. Complex flavors of ripe melon and Meyer lemon emerge, with a creamy texture and a long finish from fermentation and aging in the large vessels.”
My Notes: I liked this wine.
2022 J. Lohr Sauvignon Blanc, F&G Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $25 (#1143)
Winery Notes: “The 2022 F&G Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc presents aromas of honeysuckle, grapefruit, and a hint of fig. Bright flavors of ripe key lime, vanilla, Meyer lemon, and tarragon take center stage, with a rich palate texture and long finish.”
My Notes: I found this wine a bit tart.
J. Lohr Bay Mist White Riesling, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $13 (#1144)
Winery Notes: “Fun and casual. Unoaked and just slightly sweet. My goes-with-anything, toes-in-the-sand wine.”
My Notes: What a pretty bottling for this wine – reflecting the Monterey Bay and the idea this would be a great beach wine. This off-dry Riesling was a tad sweet for my preferences.
JOYCE Wine Co.
We finally make it to our host for the event – Joyce Wine Co.They have a beautiful property in the heart of Arroyo Seco, surrounded by vineyards. Way too many wines to taste for the end of our day, but we did our best. I look forward to going back there to taste again – after the fall winemaking season calms down. We have been to their tasting room in Carmel Valley Village several times. I last wrote them up here: Joyce: Exploring the Endless Potential of Monterey’s Coastal Terroir.
2022 Joyce Sauvignon Blanc, Griva Vineyard, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $28 (#1145)
Winery Notes: “Vibrant and pronounced, a nose of peach and gooseberry open up to a palate of citrus and spring time earthiness.”
2022 Joyce Rosé, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $25 (#1146)
Winery Notes: “A savory-leaning nose of tomato water and oyster shell sets the tone for a lightly-fruited, pale pink thirst quencher with minerality that will make you drool.”
My Notes: Perfume on the nose and a tartness on the palate.
2022 Joyce Albariño, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $28 (#1147)
Winery Notes: “Warm-weather, tropical fruits lead the nose followed by white flowers on an ocean breeze. Bright and refreshing, supple texture and minerality on the palate.”
2021 Joyce GSM, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $35 (#1148) 30% Grenache, 40% Syrah, 30% Mourvèdre
Winery Notes: “This Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre blend yields concentrated flavor, high acidity and strong tannins–all elements that suggest this wine can be cellared for many years.”
My Notes: I detected some of that “Central Coast funk” on the nose – that funky aroma or flavor I often get with Central Coast Syrahs. The plate was spicy and quite tasty! August 2023
2021 Joyce Syrah, Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey County, $30 (#1149)
Winery Notes: “A classic representation of the varietal with noticeable, dusty tannin, dark fruits and earthy, smoky, woody notes hitting throughout.”
The fruit comes from Joyce vineyards, plus Zabala plus Cedar Lane – sounds like a winning combo!
My Notes: Dark ruby in glass. Grass on the nose. Relatively light on palate. August 2023
THE TASTING ROOMS
Because there were so many wineries present at this event, I recommend checking their individual websites for information on where and when to taste their wines. You can taste Martin Ranch wines at their winery in Gilroy. Chesebro, Bernardus and Joyce tasting rooms are all located in Carmel Valley Village. Blair’s is in Carmel-by-the-Sea. J Lohr has two tasting locations: San Jose and Paso Robles.
© Decanting Monterey 2023
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