Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: In the realm of Vin Gris/Rosé wines, the Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare is one of the most iconic in the history of California. While there are others in the same grouping, this is the wine that had captured wine lovers' palate. The 2018 vintage is an excellent wine. TASTING NOTES: This wine is light in color, mysterious in flavors, and crisp in the finish. Its aromas and flavors of dried fruit, earthly dust are beautifully persistent. Pair it with fresh salmon sashimi. (Tasted: March 8, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
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Tasting Panel
An artful blend of seven— mostly Rhône—varieties with a pale pink color and a soft strawberry nose; smooth and dry with succulent notes of strawberry and apple alongside good acid structure.
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
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.