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 bunch of recent releases from Ernest Vineyards, a project of husband-and-wife team Todd Gottula and Erin Brooks. In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ve known and been friends with both since before their winemaking days, when Todd became a client of my marketing agency in San Francisco. As a result, I’ve watched Ernest Vineyards go from being the germ of an idea to being a full-fledged, life-consuming passion project for Todd and Erin. Gottula can’t quite quit his tech-exec day job yet, but Brooks has made Ernest her full-time focus for a while, a position required all the more now that they have graduated from merely leasing vineyards and buying grapes to owning their own vineyard on a hill above the tiny town of Freestone.
In 2018, Brooks brought on winemaker Joseph Ryan and his (prodigious) talent has been instrumental in taking the Ernest wines to the next level. Indeed, the latest releases from Ernest are the best I’ve ever tasted from this brand, and now place them firmly in the upper-echelons of producers from the Sonoma Coast.
Gottula is a Burgundy nut, so it’s no surprise that Ernest would now be making a fresh and bright Aligoté from what is (for now) the only source of the grape in Sonoma County. However, that parenthetical might clue you into the fact that Gottula and Brooks have planted some on their property outside of Freestone, so you can expect some Sonoma Coast Aligoté in the future. Their Chardonnays are pithy and bright and quite tasty, with an occasional saline note in the best of them.
I was recently introduced to LOLA Wines while exploring the current state of California Chenin Blanc, which I did for my monthly column at JancisRobinson.Com this week. LOLA, a wine brand started by Seth Cripe and Rafaela Costa, makes a wide range of wines from around Napa and Sonoma, including a bunch of small-lot bottlings of less-than-common grape varieties. Their Albariño possesses a spot-on varietal character and great steely acidity, their Cunoise is a crunchy saline-berry concoction, and their air-dried “Straw Wine” of Muscat is quite unusual in character with just the barest hint of sweetness.
It’s been some time since I tasted the efforts of winemaker Leo Hansen at Leo Steen Wines but having gotten a few of his new releases I’m reminded just how much I admire his low-intervention, high-acid approach to winemaking. His Anderson Valley Pinot Noir is positively Burgundian in quality, his Cabernet Franc a study in beautiful aromatics and savory notes, and his Red Table Wine a fun, crunchy bottle of glou-glou.
Lastly, I’ve got a couple of Italians to recommend. The Poliziano bottling from Maremma is a Tuscan Cabernet with a bit of coastal influence, with some fairly stiff tannins that need a little time in the bottle yet, while the softer Montepulciano from Garafoli is a bit more approachable with its leathery and herbal character. Both have lovely freshness.
Notes on all these below.
Tasting Notes
2022 Ernest Vineyards Aligoté, Bennett Valley, Sonoma, California
Pale greenish gold in the glass, this wine smells of grapefruit pith and pomelo. Tangy, bright flavors of lemon curd, greengage plum, and finger limes are zippy with excellent acidity with a nice silky texture. Hints of pastry cream linger in the finish. Spends 15 months in neutral puncheons. 11% alcohol. From the sole source of Aligoté in Sonoma County. Score: around 9. Cost: $38. click to buy.
2021 Ernest Vineyards “Estate – Freestone Valley” Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, Sonoma, California
Pale gold in the glass with a hint of green, this wine smells of white flowers, wet chalkboard, and lemon pith. Wonderfully…
Source : https://www.vinography.com/2024/12/vinography-unboxed-week-of-12-22-24
