Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A candidate for the best white ever made from this estate, the 2016 White is a Rhone variety blend brought up in a mix of concrete tanks, neutral barrels and new French oak. It offers a terrific bouquet of buttered citrus, crushed rocks, orange peel and honeycomb. It has a steely, mineral, salty style, yet packs a punch with its full-bodied mouthfeel, beautiful concentration, vibrant acidity and a great finish. Count me as a fan, and while I love it today, I suspect it’s going to evolve gracefully.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend mainly of Roussanne and Viognier, the 2016 White has an alluringly savory nose of lightly browned toast, salted almonds and fresh hay over a core of ripe apricots, poached pears and white pepper. The full-bodied palate has a lovely phenolic grip and seductive oiliness to the texture, with tons of savory-laced stone fruit flavors and great length.
Full-bodied and flavorful, white Rhône blends originate from France’s Rhône Valley. Today these blends are also becoming popular in other regions. Typically some combination of Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier form the basis of a white Rhône blend with varying degrees of flexibility depending on the exact appellation. Somm Secret—In the Northern Rhône, blends of Marsanne and Roussanne are common but the south retains more variety. Marsanne, Roussanne as well as Bourboulenc, Clairette, Picpoul and Ugni Blanc are typical.
Paso Robles has made a name for itself as a source of supple, powerful, fruit-driven Central Coast wines. But with eleven smaller sub-AVAs, there is actually quite a bit of diversity to be found in this inland portion of California’s Central Coast.
Just east over the Santa Lucia Mountains from the chilly Pacific Ocean, lie the coolest in the region: Adelaida, Templeton Gap and (Paso Robles) Willow Creek Districts, as well as York Mountain AVA and Santa Margarita Ranch. These all experience more ocean fog, wind and precipitation compared to the rest of the Paso sub-appellations. The San Miguel, (Paso Robles) Estrella, (Paso Robles) Geneso, (Paso Robles) Highlands, El Pomar and Creston Districts, along with San Juan Creek, are the hotter, more western appellations of the greater Paso Robles AVA.
This is mostly red wine country, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel standing out as the star performers. Other popular varieties include Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Grenache and Rhône blends, both red and white. There is a fairly uniform tendency here towards wines that are unapologetically bold and opulently fruit-driven, albeit with a surprising amount of acidity thanks to the region’s chilly nighttime temperatures.