Winemaker Notes
Blend: 41% Roussanne, 26% Chardonnay, 14% Petit Manseng, 12% Viognier and 7% Muskat (Gelber Muskateller)
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Starting with the white, the 2019 Distenta I White is pure perfection, and there's not a finer white coming out of California today...it spent 23 months in 64% new French oak. It offers a heavenly bouquet of caramelized oranges, toasted bread, honeyed citrus, and almond paste. This carries to a full-bodied, deep, concentrated white with incredible intensity and depth, yet it’s never heavy or overbearing and is flawlessly balanced. These have a great track record of aging brilliantly, but you can’t go wrong drinking them in their youth, either. I know Krankl’s reds get all the attention, but he continues to produce brilliant, brilliant dry whites.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 White Wine Distenta 1 is a stunning—and unique—blend... Fruit comes mostly from estate vineyards, with 46% from Eleven Confessions, 32% from Cumulus and 7% from The Third Twin. Just 15% Chardonnay from the Bien Nacido Vineyard in Santa Maria Valley is included-—2019 is the last vintage that any non-estate fruit will be included in the blend. It was fermented in barrel and matured on its lees for about 23 months in 64% new French oak barrels, puncheons and demi-muids and was racked just once prior to bottling. Manfred Krankl especially likes the 150+-year-old wood that the Austrian cooper Stockinger uses to craft its staves. The 2019 white offers high intensity aromatics, with layers of peach, kiwi, candle smoke, petrol and green herbs. The full-bodied palate is concentrated, savory and layered, with loads of alluring, spicy accents. What really sets this wine apart is its broad, satiny texture as it glides through the mouth into a tremendously long finish. Krankl notes that the lees-stirring regimen for this wine helps to build texture, and the buildup of lees on the inside of the barrels better integrates its new oak character. "Petite Manseng berries are very small and the skins are very thick," he adds, "so that also contributes to the texture."
With hundreds of white grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended white wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used in white wine blends, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a variety that creates a soft and full-bodied white wine blend, like Chardonnay, would do well combined with one that is more fragrant and naturally high in acidity. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
Responsible for the vast majority of American wine production, if California were a country, it would be the world’s fourth largest wine-producing nation. The state’s diverse terrain and microclimates allow for an incredible range of red wine styles, and unlike tradition-bound Europe, experimentation is more than welcome here. California wineries range from tiny, family-owned boutiques to massive corporations, and price and production are equally varied. Plenty of inexpensive bulk wine is made in the Central Valley area, while Napa Valley is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious and expensive “cult” wines.
Each American Viticultural Area (AVA) and sub-AVA of has its own distinct personality, allowing California to produce red wine of every fashion: from bone dry to unctuously sweet, still to sparkling, light and fresh to rich and full-bodied. In the Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc dominate vineyard acreage. Sonoma County is best known for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Rosé and Zinfandel. The Central Coast has carved out a niche with Rhône Blends based on Grenache and Syrah, while Mendocino has found success with cool climate varieties such as Pinot noir, Riesling and Gewürztraminer. With all the diversity that California wine has to offer, any wine lover will find something to get excited about here.