Aromatics are stunning: pear blossom and honey. On entry, the honeyed notes expand, and become a nectar of jasmine, white tea, lychee, and lime chiffon. It finishes with salty melon and powdered toffee.
Aromatics are stunning: pear blossom and honey. On entry, the honeyed notes expand, and become a nectar of jasmine, white tea, lychee, and lime chiffon. It finishes with salty melon and powdered toffee.
Ballard Canyon Syrah and Grenache and Los Olivos District Mourvèdre are top-choice sub-AVAs in Santa Ynez for these varieties. Aged 10 months in neutral oak barrels, with a lower alcohol of 13.3%, this fresh-tasting Rhône blend allows earth and wild strawberries to shine, backed by a fine acidity. Cocoa, black raspberry, and Rooibos tea stand out mid-way. The wine is buoyed by sleek tannins and a spiced sandalwood finish.
Former Marine Matt Fowler is now owner and Chief Sloucher, creating wines that allow him serenity in life. Barrel fermented on the lees, this high-acid Sauv Blanc speaks of tart green apple, thyme, lime zest, melon, and a peck of salinity on the tongue. Crisp with striking freshness.
Deep, well extracted, nearly opaque core, dark fruit aromas backed with roasted coffee, vanilla oak and savory spice, full, weighty, robust, well structured, fine integration of high-quality oak, good palate presence that carries through to the finish. Develops well with aeration.
A vivacious blend of Barbera, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Pinot Noir, produced in the Charmat Method. Prominent notes of peach, melon and tart citrus are revealed through its delicate bubbles. Floral notes of tangerine blossom offer a hint of honey.
Some Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs have become rather “domesticated” as both the acidity and the ripeness of the fruit seem more toned down than when the category first took the world by storm. That’s not the case with this example, which shows sweetly ripe fruit with both citrus and tropical notes, along with intense acidity that is really needed to achieve a push-and-pull balance of tartness with fruity sweetness.
Silky and luscious with pineapple sorbet, grapefruit zest, and laurel. Expressive and vibrant, with a salty finish.
Although this wine’s label is an object lesson in informality, its vinification was quite methodical, including 52% stainless steel but also French oak barrels as well as a large oak foudre and a concrete egg. The fruit was picked at five different times over multiple weeks, and all this adds up to a wine with serious complexity. It combines ripe fruit notes with well-integrated acidity and appealing nuances that rise or recede in prominence as the wine warms in the glass.