Winemaker Notes
A very pretty, highly filigreed wine a touch more of of the slightly severe, saline, sea air quality last seen in 2015, propels the 2023. Again fermented completely dry. Not to name drop, and they'd never suggest the Jurassic Park Chenin could double for a wine from the central Loire (nor should it, nor need it), but if there was drawn some sort of analogy, one might say there is some of the flowers and honey and Granny Smith apple from a pretty vintage of Vouvray, alongside a very healthy dose of wooliness, brimstone, oyster shell and ocean air one might associate with the larger-scaled wines of Savennières. That’s a fine haul of inside baseball which might be better and more easily expressed by stating, rarely is found the flattering side of animal, vegetable and mineral in a single wine, though Chenin Blanc, is the most likely agent of this good fortune, though only from an exceptional site from an exceptional year.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Clean lines of wet stone and brisk apple show on the nose of this bottling from the most popular Chenin Blanc vineyard on the Central Coast. It’s subtle and easygoing on the palate, offering lemon flesh, grapefruit rind and pear-flesh flavors
Unquestionably one of the most diverse grape varieties, Chenin Blanc can do it all. It shines in every style from bone dry to unctuously sweet, oaked or unoaked, still or sparkling and even as the base for fortified wines and spirits. Perhaps Chenin Blanc’s greatest asset is its ever-present acidity, maintained even under warm growing conditions. Somm Secret—Landing in South Africa in the mid 1800s, today the country has double the acreage of Chenin Blanc planted compared to France. There is also a new wave of dedicated producers committed to restoring old Chenin vines.
Ranging from cool and foggy in the west to warm and dry in the east, the Santa Ynez Valley is a climatically diverse growing area. The most expansive AVA within the larger Santa Barbara County region, Santa Ynez is also home to a wide variety of soil types and geographical features. The appellation is further divided into four distinct sub-AVAs—Sta. Rita Hills, Ballard Canyon, Los Olivos District and Happy Canyon—each with its own defining characteristics.
A wide selection of grapes is planted here—more than sixty different varieties, and counting. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir dominate in the chilly west, while Zinfandel, Rhône blends, and Bordeaux blends rule the arid east. Syrah is successful at both ends of the valley, with a lean and peppery, Old-World sensibility closer to the coast and lush berry fruit further inland.