by Ray Johnson | Jul 28, 2010 | California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Syrah
JC Cellars, Santa Barbara County, Fess Parker’s Vineyard, Syrah 2007 Give this wine a bit of air, 10 minutes or so to blow off a bit of reductive character. Then the black fruit will emerge, wrapped in a jacket of leather. In the mouth there are notes of tar and...
by Ray Johnson | Apr 28, 2010 | California, Cote-Rotie, Russian River Valley, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Sonoma County, Syrah
This flight of Syrah takes us from the freshness of new fruit in California, to the development of bottle bouquet in wines from 2003 – excellent all around, featuring different expressions of the same grape over time and over both sides of the Atlantic. Foxen,...
by Ray Johnson | Aug 4, 2009 | California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Sauvignon Blanc
Firestone Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 This wine delivers full-on grassiness and gooseberries in the nose. In the mouth there is plenty of citrus and citrus peel and very vibrant acidity – refreshing. P&B in Los Olivos 13.5% $18 at the...
by Ray Johnson | Aug 4, 2009 | California, Grenache Blanc, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley
Curran Wines, Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara County, Grenache Blanc 2007 The nose combines flowers and herbaceous notes while the mouth is reminiscent of biting into a plum that isn’t fully ripe, bursting with fruit yet ripping with tart acidity and a bit of...
by Ray Johnson | Jul 30, 2009 | California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Syrah
Foxen, Santa Ynez Valley, Williamson-Dore Vineyard, Syrah 2006 This vintage exudes sweetness, like berry jam and raspberry liqueur. In the mouth it is supple and warm, oaky and smoky – a very rich and ripe style of red wine. The previous vintage was also a crowd...
by Ray Johnson | Jul 18, 2009 | California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Viognier
Zaca Mesa, Santa Ynez Valley, Estate Grown and Bottled, Viognier 2008 This wine is very peachy and sweet appearing, slippery and rich. Fermentation began in stainless and then the wine spent 3 mos in neutral fr oak; malolactic was avoided. Clay Brock Winemaker,...
