Winemaker Notes
Fresh yellow peach and apricot with subtle notes of honeydew melon and orange blossom. Flavors of stone fruit continue to expand on the palate while flavors of young pineapple and citrus zest come into play. The weightiness of the wine is balanced by bright acidity creating a harmonious balance between lushness and vibrancy.
Blend: 76% Chardonnay, 14% Albarino, 10% Viognier
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2018 Tooth & Nail Fragrant Snare is a tangy and bright white wine. TASTING NOTES: This wine brings aromas and flavors of dried earth, sandalwood, tangy apple to the fore. Pair it with seared Ahi tuna with mild chiles. (Tasted: April 21, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
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Wine Enthusiast
Slightly sour lemon-peel aromas play against the more ripe tone of pear flesh and honeydew on the nose of this Chardonnay-led blend. There's a toasty quality to the sip, where clean and rich flavors of lemon, baked apple and sea salt carry long into the finish.
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.
A lesser-known but elite AVA within the larger Santa Barbara district, the Santa Maria Valley AVA runs precisely west to east starting near the coast. The valley funnels cool, Pacific Ocean air to the vineyards more inland, allowing grapes a longer hang time to ripen evenly and achieve their full potential by harvest time. Combined with minimal rainfall, consistent warm sunshine, and well-drained soils, it is an ideal environment for grape growing.
Many of the wineries here are small and highly respected, having established a reputation in the 1970s and 80s for producing excellent Central Coast wines like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. More recently, Syrah has also proven quite successful in the region. Many vineyards are owned by growers who sell their grapes to other wineries, so it is common to see the same vineyard name on bottlings from different wineries. Bien Nacido Vineyard is perhaps the best-known and most prestigious.