Last week’s article was about the seminar that kicked off the latest Rhone Rangers event in Los Angeles.
Now it is time to report on the grand tasting. Three dozen wineries were pouring, mostly from Santa Barbara County and Paso Robles]:
Adelaida Vineyards & Winery
Alta Colina
Andrew Murray Vineyards
Bernat
Bonny Doon Vineyard
Broken Earth Winery
Calcareous Vineyard
Crux Winery
Derby Wine Estates
Eberle Winery
Fess Parker & Epiphany
Hearst Ranch Winery
Jaffurs Wine
Kaleidos
Kenneth Volk Vineyards
Kukkula
Leverage
Lone Madrone
Martian Ranch & Vineyard
Morgan Winery
Petrichor Vineyards
Pomar Junction Vineyard & Winery
Qupé
Ranchero Cellars
Record Family Wines
Rideau
Ridge Vineyards
Sculpterra Winery
Seven Oxen
Tablas Creek Vineyard
tercero wines
Thacher Winery
The Withers Winery
Two Shepherds
Vines on the Marycrest
Wrath
Zaca Mesa
Zenaida Cellars
I was determined to get to some new wineries along with some old favorites. With that many wineries, I couldn’t taste nearly everything. So, before I begin my personal picks from the event, I’d like to preface my remarks. More than maybe any other event, the Rhone Rangers tastings have always impressed me with the overall high quality of the wines being poured. My point is this. I tasted at less than half of the tables and found amazing wines at pretty much all of them. I am quite sure that if I had tasted at the other half of the winery tables, I would have found an equal number of outstanding wines at those stations as well.
That being said, these were the standouts for me of what I tasted – once again, please pardon the lack of diacritical marks on the French words. I’ve added a few comments here and there, along with a few from my wife Karen as well, noted as KP.
Alta Colima
Paso Robles, CA
2013 Toasted Slope Syrah
Andrew Murray Vineyards
Los Olivos, CA
2014 Roasted Slope Syrah
2015 Watch Hill Vineyard Syrah
[Nice to see Andrew Murray, one of my early Rhone influencers, continuing to hit it out of the park.]
Bernat Wines
Los Olivos
2010 Intrigue Syrah
Bonny Doon Vineyard
Santa Cruz, CA
2012 Le Cigare Volant Red Blend
[Randall Grahm is my own personal nominee for the father of the American Rhone movement, with the latest release of the wine that started it all for me.]
KP: Bonny Doon’s 2016 Picpoul was an even balance of bright acidity and minerality. My favorite white of the day.
Calcareous Vineyard
Paso Robles, Ca
2014 Tres Violet Red Blend
2013 Devil’s Canyon Syrah
2013 Moose Red Blend
Crux Winery
Geyserville, CA
2013 GSM, Red Blend
2014 Mourvedre
2013 Syrah
[Nice to taste some of more of the wines from this winery that I was first introduced to at Hospice du Rhone last year.]
Derby Wine Estate
Paso Robles, CA
2011 Mourvedre
2013 Petite Sirah
[For some reason I hadn’t tasted Derby’s wines, even though I am well acquainted with the history of one their vineyards – Laura’s. I’m glad I finally tried them.]
KP: I dragged Michael over to the Derby table. I enjoyed all their white wines and loved their 2015 Mourvedre Rose. Light, refreshing and clean on the palate. It was one of my favorites of the day.
Hearst Ranch
San Simeon, CA
2014 The Pergola Petite Sirah
Leverage
Paso Robles, CA
2016 Leverage Rose, Grenache Blend
2014 Acceleration Red Blend
2014 Trajectory, GSM Red Blend
[A fairly new winery, doing some good things.]
Petrichor Vineyards
Santa Rosa, CA
2014 Syrah
2014 Grenache
2014 Les Trois Red Blend
[I’ve been a fan of this winery since it started. We visited them in 2015. Still making great wines that make you want more of them.]
KP: I tasted the Petrichor 2016 Rose Blend. Subtle and very enjoyable.
Ranchero Cellars
Paso Robles, Ca
2013 Carignane
[Amy Butler might be better known as a consulting winemaker for other wineries in Paso, but her own label is definitely worth seeking out.]
KP: Amy’s 2015 Chrome, Grenache Blanc, knocked me over. It has wonderful mouth feel and bright apple overtones.
Ridge Vineyards
Curpertino, CA
2015 Lytton Estate Petite Sirah
2014 Lytton Estate Grenache/Mataro/Syrah
[An iconic winery. Nothing else needs to be said.]
tercero wines.
Los Olivos, CA
2013 Mourvedre
2011 Grenache, Camp 4 Vineyard
Two Shepherds
Windsor, CA
2014 Pastoral Blanc
2014 Pastoral Melange, Red Blend
Vines on the Marycrest
Paso Robles, CA
2014 Syrah
2014 Petite Sirah
Zaca Mesa
Los Olivos, CA
2014 Mourvedre
2012 Mesa Reserve Syrah
[Almost skipped this oldtimer, until I saw our friend Anita Musi pouring the wine. Turns out she is now their Southern California sales manager. I’m glad we stopped because the wines were excellent.]
Stopping at Zaca Mesa helped to remind me, and I am now reminding you, to check out all of these Rhone Ranger wineries. They’re making wonderful, delicious wines and deserve your attention.
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. Michael is also Vice President of Eve Bushman Consulting (fka Eve’s Wine 101 Consulting) http://evebushmanconsulting.com/ and President of MCP Financial. Michael can be contacted at michaelthezinfan@aol.com or michael@evebushmanconsulting.com.
