Salt of the Earth Flore de Moscato 2013
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2022-
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Salt of the Earth comes from a hot and sultry valley where the grapevines grow lush and the fruit hangs heavy with sugar: California's San Joaquin Valley. Its neighbors are almonds, peaches, cotton and tomatoes. Out of the dust, dirt and sweat is born a straightforward, no-nonsense sensibility. Moscato reflects that valley. It is made to satisfy the need for simplicity in a beverage.
The key components of Salt of the Earth vineyards (nutrients, insect life, crop life, and water use) are kept in careful balance via active monitoring and integrated pest management. This balance is best achieved by minimal intervention and careful cultivation of the vineyard eco-system. Vineyards are cover cropped to provide essential minerals in the soil and to create habitat for beneficial insects. Only natural plant or manure based fertilizers are used. Pests are controlled through beneficial insects with minimal, targeted intervention using chemical pesticides. Water use is carefully monitored via soil moisture sensors and all vineyards are drip irrigated.
While Muscat comes in a wide range of styles from dry to sweet, still to sparkling and even fortified, it's safe to say it is always alluringly aromatic and delightful. The two most important versions are the noble, Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, making wines of considerable quality and Muscat of Alexandria, thought to be a progeny of the former. Somm Secret—Pliny the Elder wrote in the 13th century of a sweet, perfumed grape variety so attractive to bees that he referred to it as uva apiana, or “grape of the bees.” Most likely, he was describing Muscat.
The largest and perhaps most varied of California’s wine-growing regions, the Central Coast produces a good majority of the state's wine. This vast California wine district stretches from San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara along the coast, and reaches inland nearly all the way to the Central Valley.
Encompassing an extremely diverse array of climates, soil types and wine styles, it contains many smaller sub-AVAs, including San Francisco Bay, Monterey, the Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley.
While the Central Coast California wine region could probably support almost any major grape varietiy, it is famous for a few Central Coast reds and whites. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are among the major ones. The Central Coast is home to many of the state's small, artisanal wineries crafting unique, high-quality wines, as well as larger producers also making exceptional wines.