August 2022: The New California wine scene and tracing the journey of "Expat" grapes
- Posted on
- By Kevin Nguyen
- Posted in Wine Share
Hey Stranger!
For July, we are spotlighting two young California producers who are challenging the status quo in our standard share and investigating the history of uncommon grape varieties in specific regions.
The August 2022 Standard “Stranger” Share:
This month, we’re keeping things stateside and showcasing two domestic wines that represent the new guard of California winemakers. Given our selection to date, it’s clear that we have a slight bias towards French wines as the radical winemakers in Beaujolais and the Loire Valley were the original producers that captured our hearts. But as wine writer Jon Bonne makes clear in his book The New California Wine, there is a growing wave of young, innovative producers who are rewriting the rules of California winemaking with their Burgundian chase for terroir, use of non-traditional grape varieties, and rejection of the technocratic wine culture that has defined the region for so many years. These pioneering winemakers are showing us a new and exciting future for California wine and we can’t wait for you to join in on the ride. H
2021 Madson Wines Gamay Noir
Our first taste of Madson was in the spring of 2020, when things were…well you know. The wines gave us everything we were craving for in that moment: precision, clarity, and elegance. There is a no-frills nature to Madson’s wines that might come from the winemaker's origins as an organic farmer and seed saver. Cole Thomas eventually joined the winemaking community and hemisphere hopped for years - bouncing between California, Australia, and New Zealand - before settling in the Santa Cruz Mountains. As a new winery, Madson doesn’t own any of their vineyards yet but they lease them and meticulously farm each plot to the highest standards.
The 2021 Gamay Noir is one of Madson’s first wines sourced from Santa Rita Hills. The slightly cooler climate makes this area a prime growing location for Gamay. It undergoes full cluster, carbonic maceration and sits in neutral oak for 6 months. Expect notes of dark cherries, sage, and slight dusting of cinnamon spice. Pair with a rack of herb-crusted lamb or with your friends who just discovered that they like Beaujolais.
2019 Martha Stoumen “Honeymoon”
Martha Stoumen is a pioneer on many levels as a female farmer, grower, winemaker, and entrepreneur in a male-dominated field. Martha is a California native who caught the winemaking bug when she was 21 during a farm stay in Tuscany. After working harvests all over the world and obtaining her masters in oenology at UC Davis, Martha worked with some of the best winemakers in her favorite regions: Giusto Occhipinti of COS in Sicily and Chris Brockway of Broc Cellars in California. In Sicily, she learned how to work with sun-loving grapes and in California, she became inspired to make the wines she loved to drink in her backyard.
The 2019 “Honeymoon” is a 75% Colombard and 25% Chardonnay blend sourced from Mendocino. Unlike the previous vintage that was affected by botrytis, this year Martha experimented with oxidation to give the wine a layered complexity. Expect notes of honeyblossom, grilled lemon, and golden apples. Pair with a summer peach salad or with sourdough bread toasted with apricot jam.
The August 2022 Deluxe “Not a Stranger” Share:
This month, we are featuring wines made from “Expat Grapes,” a term we made up to describe grape varieties that are uncommon for the terroir. There are many reasons why you might encounter a wine made from “surprising” grape varieties: they could have been purchased by a winery in a different region, they may have been planted to a new home by an experimental vigneron, or sometimes a grape variety has always existed in a region but doesn’t always get the spotlight. We love to drink these wines as it allows us to have a fuller, more nuanced understanding of the many ways a single grape variety might express itself given different terroir.
2021 Escoda-Sanahuja “Els Bassots” Chenin Blanc
First up is a Chenin Blanc from Escoda-Sanahuja in Catalonia, Spain. Predominantly found in the Loire, South Africa, and the US, Chenin in Spain is a more rare sighting! Spanish Chenin Blanc is mostly associated with Catalonia but it was recently discovered that the grape Agudelo, found in Galicia, is genetically identical to our beloved grape variety! The “Els Bassots” is a 10-day skin-contact Chenin Blanc. Expect intense notes of stone fruits and bitter citrus. Pair with seafood paella.
2019 Jean Yves Peron “I Vicini” Barbera
Born and raised in Savoie, Jean Yves Peron knew he wanted to be a winemaker from a young age. He studied in Bordeaux and worked with the greats, like Thierry Allemand and Bruno Scheuller, before returning home to create wines with native grapes. Inspired by his love of Northern Italian orange wines and the realization that Piemonte was incredibly close by, Jean started the “I Vicini” project where he purchases organic Piemonte grape varieties to play around with. The “I Vicini” Barbera perfectly represents the intersection of Italy and France. On the nose, the wine presents itself as a classic Piemonte Barbera with notes of bright cherries and plums. Upon tasting, you get the French alpine influence as a mountain freshness and herbaceousness envelopes the fruit. Pair with vitello tonnato or a charcuterie plate.
2019 Macea Pinot Nero
Pinot Noir is one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world - the tenth to be exact! But such a ubiquitous grape, Pinot Noir is a notoriously fragile variety. The grapes grow in tight clusters, leaving it susceptible to rot, and are relatively thinned-skin, relegating the grape to cool-climate growing areas. These factors made it all the more surprising for us to find Pinot Noir grown in the sun-soaked region of Tuscany! The Macea winery is located in northern Tuscany and is run by two brothers. Their Pinot Noir is planted on the Lucca hills where there is a uniquely cool microclimate. This wine has notes of black tea, mulberries, and rhubarb. Pair with pappardelle al ragu or a good book by the fireplace.
We hope you enjoy. Don’t be a Stranger and join our wine share here!