hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have crossed my doorstep recently.
This past week included a couple of interesting wines made in a Trappist monastery in the far north of California. The vineyards where they grow their grapes have a storied history stretching back to the mid 1800s when, for a while, it was the single largest vineyard operation not just in California, but the world. Owned briefly by Governor Leland Stanford, the land was sold off in pieces after the onset of Prohibition. In 1955, the Trappists bought a big chunk of it, and restarted wine production, led by fifth-generation winemaker Aimée Sunseri. The New Clairvaux monks, in their wisdom, have planted their volcanic soils with Greek, Spanish, and Italian grape varieties. This week, I’ve got their two Greek white wines to recommend, their Assyrtiko (the first planted in California to my knowledge) and their Moschofilero, which I have never seen anywhere. Both are crisp, bright and refreshing.
Of course, those words could also describe the Pinot Blanc I’d like to recommend from Brooks Note Winery. I was introduced to Brooks Note a couple of months ago as I was exploring Marin wines, and I decided I wanted to take a closer look at some of their Sonoma wines as well. They gave me a Pinot Noir and a GSM blend, both of which I’m also recommending this week in addition to this lovely, graceful Pinot Blanc.
Bridging from white to pink, let’s dally for a moment in between, in the realm of a white wine with just a shade of skin contact. For that I’ve got a Pinot Grigio from Tar & Roses Wines in the Victoria region of Australia. Definitely not an orange wine, this wine just has a slight hue and faint grip that tells you it’s not a straightforward white, but is much the better for it.
In the pink universe, I received a cute little bottle of rosé from the folks at Three Sticks Wines, who have named the wine after the 1842 adobe home they occupy as a tasting room, built by the brother of famous General Mariano Vallejo, when California was still part of Mexican territory. Name and squat little bottle aside, the wine is crisp and fresh and will deliver what most are looking for in a poolside rosé.
Finally, I’ve got three more wines to recommend from Dutton Goldfield, two bright and juicy Pinot Noirs and one dark and slightly impenetrable Syrah, for those who want to explore their dark, earthy side.
Notes on all these below.
Tasting Notes
2023 New Clairvaux “St. James Block” Assyrtiko, Tehama County, California
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of lemon pith and sea air. In the mouth, faintly salty flavors of lemon pith and lemon juice have a nice crispness thanks to decent acidity. There’s a faint wet chalkboard minerality underneath the wine and a lemon oil note to the finish. 12.5% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $21.
2023 New Clairvaux “St. James Block” Moschofilero, Tehama County, California
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of white flowers and freshly cut Fuji apples. In the mouth, crisp flavors of apple and citrus pith have a nice brightness thanks to very good acidity. Clean and bright. 12.3% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $20.
2023 Brooks Note Pinot Blanc, Mendocino County, California
Palest greenish gold in the glass to the point of being near colorless, this wine smells of white flowers and grapefruit pith. In the mouth, zippy flavors of grapefruit and white flowers have a nice minerality and silky texture, setting up a tension in the wine that is admirable. Clean and crisp. Very good acidity. 13% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $34. click to buy.
2023 Tar & Roses Pinot Grigio, Victoria, Australia
A pale blonde in color with bronze highlights, this wine smells of pears and pastry cream….
Source : https://www.vinography.com/2024/06/vinography-unboxed-week-of-6-16-24
