This is Part 2 of last week’s Rhone Ranger article.
One can never taste everything. Of what I sampled, the wines that really stood out for me at this event were:
ANDREW MURRAY VINEYARDS
LOS OLIVOS, CA
www.andrewmurrayvineyards.com
One of my early favorites from Santa Barbara County, still going strong.
2011 Syrah, Watch Hill Vineyard
2010 Syrah, Terra Bella Vineyard
ANGLIM
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.anglimwinery.com
Steven and Steffanie Anglim have been working for a long time producing their balanced food-friendly wines.
2010 Mourvedre, Hastings Ranch
BONNY DOON VINEYARD
SANTA CRUZ, CA
www.bonnydoonvineyard.com
From the original Rhone Ranger and the winemaker who was most responsible for introducing me to Rhone varietals in the first place. Randall Grahm wasn’t in attendance but his mother was.
2010 White Blend “Le Cigare Blanc Reserve”
2008 Red Blend “Le Cigare Volant”
2008 Red Blend “Le Cigare Volant Reserve”
CALCAREOUS VINEYARD
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.calcareous.com
Humbly named after the rich, calcareous soils on the Westside of Paso Robles, this winery produces some outstanding wines, including this Syrah blended with Petit Verdot.
2010 Syrah “Moose”
CALIZA WINERY
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.calizawinery.com
Another terroir-named winery, Caliza is the Spanish word for limestone.
2012 Rose “Pink”
2010 Red Blend “Azimuth”
CLAVO CELLARS
TEMPLETON, CA
www.clavocellars.com
Neil Roberts continues to craft delicious wines from grapes he obtains from vineyards he manages.
2011 Viognier
2011 Grenache Blanc
2009 Syrah
2010 Petite Sirah
DONELAN WINES
SANTA ROSA, CA
www.donelanwines.com
A very exciting small producer that had not been on my radar until now.
2010 Red Blend “Cuvee Moriah”
2010 Syrah “Cuvee Christine”
KIERAN ROBINSON WINES
SONOMA, CA
Kieran is assistant winemaker at Jericho Canyons and makes a very small amount of wine under his own label.
www.kieranrobinsonwines.com
2009 Syrah, Vivio Vineyard, Bennett Valley
LAW ESTATE WINES
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.lawestatewines.com
Full disclosure – I did not taste these wines at this event, but tasted them at the Ojai Wine Festival which I wrote about recently. In case you missed that article, I really enjoyed their wines, including…
2010 Syrah “Intrepid”
2010 Red Blend “Sagacious”
MARTINELLI WINERY
WINDSOR, CA
www.martinelliwinery.com
Frequent Eve’s Wine 101 guest writer [and good friend] Rick Fraga works in the Martinelli Tasting room and yet I have never visited them? Shame on me!
2008 Syrah, Terra Felice
2008 Syrah, Hop Camp Vineyard
2007 Syrah, Zio Tony Ranch
MIRA WINERY
SAINT HELENA, CA
www.miranapa.com
One of the few wines from Napa I tasted that day, this small winery is making a name for itself.
2009 Syrah, Hyde Vineyard
PETRICHOR VINEYARDS
SANTA ROSA, CA
www.petrichorvineyards.com
Another small winery getting a lot of recognition, deservedly so.
2009 Red Blend, “Les Trois”
2010 Red Blend, “Les Trois”
STEINBECK VINEYARDS & WINERY
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.steinbeckwines.com
This legendary Paso Robles vineyard is now producing wines under its own label.
2008 Petite Sirah
2008 Red Blend “The Crash”
2008 Red Blend “The Voice”
TERCERO WINES
LOS OLIVOS, CA
www.tercerowines.com
Larry Schaffer’s wines continue to be crowd pleasers.
2012 Rose of Mourvedre
2009 Red Blend “Cuvee Christie”
2009 Syrah, Larner Vineyard
2009 Petite Sirah, Camp 4 Vineyard
VINES ON THE MARYCREST
PASO ROBLES, CA
www.vinesonthemarycrest.com
Victor and Jennifer Abascal are two of the nicest people you’ll meet in this industry full of nice people. As an added bonus, their wines are great, too.
2012 Rose
2010 Syrah
WRATH
SOLEDAD, CA
Very impressive winery that was a new find for me.
www.wrathwines.com
2011 Syrah Ex Anima
2010 Syrah San Saba Vineyard
2010 Syrah Doctor’s Vineyard
2010 Syrah KW Ranch
I left the Rhone Ranger tasting event very satisfied knowing that the future of Rhone varietals in California is in very good hands.
Michael Perlis has been pursuing his passion for wine for more than 25 years. He has had the good fortune of having numerous mentors to show him the way, as well as a wonderful wife who encourages him and shares his interest. After a couple of decades of learning about wine, attending events, visiting wineries and vineyards, and tasting as much wine as he possibly could, he had the amazing luck to meet Eve Bushman. Now, as Contributing Editor for Eve’s Wine 101, he does his best to bring as much information as possible about wine to Eve’s Wine 101 faithful readers. (2013 Update: Eve and Michael announced Eve Wine 101 Consulting. Info is here: http://evewine101.com/press-releases/) Michael can be contacted at michaelthezinfan@aol.com.
