Groundwork Graciano 2021
-
Wong
Wilfred
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The 2021 Groundwork Graciano offers notes of black currant, herbes de Provence, crushed rocks, cocoa, and cherry pie.
Professional Ratings
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2021 Groundwork Graciano is energized and bright on the palate. TASTING NOTES: This wine excels with aromas and flavors of tangy red fruit, hints of dried earth, and chalky notes. Try it with grilled salmon and wild mushrooms. (Tasted: August 15, 2022, San Francisco, CA)
Other Vintages
2019-
Wong
Wilfred
Graciano has been best known as a blending grape used in Rioja to add color, depth and perfume to Tempranillo. It also thrives in the nearby region of Navarra and a few dedicated winemakers in California and Australia are making singe varietal bottlings certainly worthy of checking out! Graciano’s black fruit and lush tannins make it a perfect pairing to grilled or smoked red meat, as well as game.
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.