Top Award for 2009 Syrah and a new Pinot Noir

2009 Central Coast Syrah 

This Rhone-style Syrah continues in the winning ways of our 2007 Central Coast Syrah which also received a Gold Medal from the Long Beach Grand Cru last summer. The grapes for the 2009, our current Central Coast labelled release, were grown in the Edna Valley appellation and also feature a small percentage of Grenache after the French manner. The cool climate fosters a brightness of fruit and a fine balance that sets this wine apart from the competition. Vinified in a contemporary, food-friendly style, this wine also comes in under 14% alcohol, providing a welcome contrast to the "blockbuster", high alcohol Syrahs which had their heyday during the late '90's and '00's. This wine was barrel aged and then finished for the last 30 days in 50% new, heavy toast French oak lending additional style, depth and sophistication more often found in wines costing three, four, even five times as much. This is also truly a value wine with a suggested retail price of only $19.99 and often available in limited, national markets as low as $14.99 on the shelf. It is also supremely well suited for restaurant wine-by-the-glass programs where it is most often seen for $10 or less per glass. Only 750 cases were bottled in the spring of 2011 so quantities are necessarily quite limited.

     Following directly on the heels of our sold out, three-time Gold Medal winning 2009 Edna Valley Pinot Noir the brand new 2010 Cienega Valley Pinot explores a "new" appellation that is perhaps best known as the long time home of the venerable Josh Jensen's Calera Winery in San Benito County. This interesting geological nook of the greater California wine country, just 25 miles east of Monterey Bay, includes in its unique features calcareous layers of limestone in the soil which can contribute a more pronounced earthy quality laced with a mineral briskness reminiscent of Burgundy where such soils are considered essential and an accepted prerequisite for producing fine wine. Our new Pinot Noir displays these desirable traits as well as an endowment of ripe black cherry fruit that identifies its coastal California origins. This is a complex, silky and very satisfying Pinot Noir, of which only 1,300 cases were bottled in late June. At retail our Pinot Noirs come in at or under $20 nationally and wine-by-the-glass programs can typically offer it in the $11-$12 "premium pour" range.