Prepared for some weekend wine?
See if yow will discover these Sonoma wines (or, if not, their producers) on wine lists, restaurant cabinets or on-line. They had been 4 of essentially the most compelling wines I tasted just lately, after I visited northern California for the Sonoma County Wine Public sale.
2018 Fort Ross Winery Pinot Noir from Gary Farrell Vineyards & Vineyard
Laurel Glen Winery Property Cabernet Sauvignon (particular anniversary mix of the 2007, 2011 and 2012 vintages)
2019 Grenache from Hamel Household Wines
2021 Pinot Noir Tank Pattern from Ron Rubin WInery
It’s difficult to decide on simply 4 compelling wines from 4 days of tasting all through Sonoma county, and there are definitely many different wines price mentioning.
However the record under is the wine equal of catching somebody’s eye throughout a crowded room. There was lots of bustle, noisy chatter and distraction. But these 4 wines steadied my consideration and held my gaze.
Additionally they summarize the expertise of returning to wine nation, as I wrote earlier this week. Sure, there’s the legacy of COVID protocols however it’s counterbalanced by the exuberance of re-engaging with the individuals and the panorama of wine. These wines additionally signify Sonoma’s present actuality, from an attractive mix of vintages from historic properties (the previous), to the pressing crush of this 12 months’s harvest (the current), to a cheeky and sudden providing that factors towards an uncharted and really compelling future.
Just a little background and perspective for these 4 wines particularly are included in Half Two of this put up, however first it is sensible to set the stage with some normal context for the alternatives.
ALEXANDER VALLEY, SONOMA COUNTY, CA: A terraced hillside Cabernet Sauvignon winery creating … [+]
Tasting in a Group
Experiencing these wines is certainly like catching somebody’s eye throughout a crowded room, however that isn’t only a determine of speech. I tasted every of them as a part of a bunch or lineup of different wines — not chaotic by any stretch, however different sufficient to seal the expertise much more in my reminiscence, given these wines’ capability to tell apart themselves inside a crowd.
The wine from Gary Farrell Vineyards, for instance, was one in all 4 pinot noirs that adopted three pours of chardonnays. The pattern of pinot noir from Ron Rubin Vineyard preceded the tank pattern of chardonnay, which was so new, it was actually nonetheless grape juice. The grenache from Hamel Household Wines was one in all a set of pairings throughout a multi-course meal. And the cabernet sauvignon from Laurel Glen Winery was poured through the walk-around tasting to kick off the Sonoma County Wine Public sale weekend.
That range of groupings displays the vary of tasting experiences accessible in Sonoma, even past the circumstances of a particular occasion weekend. As well as, the range of tasting experiences displays the vary of personalities of the wines and their panorama.
Tasting and not using a Sample
There isn’t a sample to those 4 wines, aside from the plain widespread floor of Sonoma origins.
They arrive from 4 completely different producers, are constituted of 4 completely different grapes which might be grown in 4 completely different soils. Two of the 4 are from vineyards which might be pretty accessible, whereas the 2 different vineyards are far off and distant. Two of the wines resemble what many customers affiliate historically with Sonoma wine, whereas the opposite two are shocking “curveballs.”
All of it makes for wine tasting experiences that hold you in your toes. Please click on over to Half Two of this collection for a deeper dive into every of the wines.