IntoWine Founder Brad Prescott's weekly wine recommendations.
This Pinot Noir drinks like Santa Barbara with a little bit of Oregon. The cool climate of the Santa Rita Hills allows for the development of pomegranate, rhubarb, black cherry, and green and black tea leaves, while its earthiness and minerality are the best attributes of Oregon Pinot Noir. Here the Southing, which has matured greatly over the years, stands apart of the run of the mill Pinot Noir. If you’ve ever been to Santa Barbara you can see the layer of clouds that hug the mountains like a blanket. Underneath that blanket are the Sea Smoke vineyards that were planted 25 years ago.
Founded in 1987, Argyle wanted to make sparkling wines that could hold their own with Champagne. Comprised of mainly Pinot Noir, there is 4% Chardonnay blended in with this 2019. What at first seems a mild sparkler, with notes of brioche bread, soft lemon and mild apricot, reveals a different side. The stone fruits and minerality come out mid palate and finish strong. Acidity is the real story here revealed with this wine, making this ideal with a variety of foods.
It’s not that Malbec is a forgotten grape, it’s that it doesn’t get the love it deserves, and too often wineries seem to want it to taste like Cabernet. Enter Whitehall Lane, who makes this impressive Malbec that you will love - a Malbec that tastes like a Malbec should. The fruit is supported by a tannic structure that provides an earthiness and rusticity to it. Blackberry brambleberry, huckleberry and boysenberry all work together to create a rich wine that’s not over the top but not subdued either. The mid-palate reveals the wines’ acidity with notes of sandalwood and cocoa powder.
Bousquet has long been producing quality wines coming out of Argentina at enviable price points. This Chardonnay straddles that line between a linear reductive style and a more malolactic fermented, brighter style. It works. And that it takes these two worlds and combines them rather seamlessly. Yes, you get the upfront lemon, lime kefir, guava, apricot and white peach notes, but there is also that silky, smooth lightly buttery style that makes this an easy drinking wine. Additionally, the acidity is spot on providing support and structure for the whole of the wine.
Flying Goat has been making wine in Santa Barbara for nearly 25 years. Best known for his various expressions of Pinot Noir, winemaker Norm Yost also produces sparkling wine and Pinot Gris. This is the first time Norm has used Gris fruit from the Shoestring Vineyard and the result is a bright, expressive, tasty Pinot Gris that will make you rethink just how good Pinot Gris can be. This has it all: citrus fruit, proper acidity, smooth on the palate and a wonderful finish.
