It occurred to me that I have yet to provide reviews for the last two wine
country trips that the Lovely Girlfriend and I have gone on over the last few
months. With another trip just eight days away I've decided to condense the two
trips into one post as they are both kind of a blur anyway. I know there is a
significant portion of my readers that couldn't care less about our hoity-toity
wine tastings and subsequent reviews. I understand if you stop reading now. I
also understand that you're a mouth breathing Philistine with about as much
culture as a backyard wrestling video. But by all means, don't feel obligated to
actually learn something that could add a bit of class to your otherwise
strip-mall existence. Go back to your big gulp and Cheetos and let us adults
talk. We'll nudge you when we get to a topic you can contribute to, like taco
farts or late night skin-o-max programming. Okay, now that their gone, let's get
down to brass tacks. The LG and I have been sucking down some pretty amazing
grape juice lately. Our last two trips yielded at least three of the most
spectacular wines (and vineyards) that we've ever tried. At the risk of exposing
these wineries to a larger audience (an audience of dozens at last count) that
whittles down their supply while driving up their prices, I cannot keep my big
mouth (gaping yaw, really) shut about them no matter the personal cost. These
private little gold strikes have to be shared with fellow wine lovers around the
world. Again, the couple dozen of you that read this on a semi-regular basis –
some as far away as Norway!!
Let's start with Sarzotti Vineyards in Templeton. Make this an early stop on your next tour of Paso and don't plan on leaving until closing time. This place is run by two of the nicest, most interesting people you will ever have the good fortune to meet. The Sarzotti's treat everyone that steps into their tasting room like family. And good, close family too. Not like your sweaty, drunk uncle that nobody wants to sit next to because he smells like gym socks even though you know he hasn't seen the inside of a gym in at least a decade and hasn't worn socks with his boat shoes for nearly as long. No, these folks either don't have those kind of family members or are too sweet to notice when one like them shows up. The LG and I got there around 1pm and spent a solid two hours plus tasting. The Barrel Reserve Cab's (both an 06 and an 07) were the absolute stand outs but in all seriousness there was not a bad sip in the bunch. They've got a 07 Syrah that will blow your mind, hell, even their table wine (aptly named Vin Tavola) is out of this world. We took the guided tour, got a blow by blow from the winemaker as to how and why he makes the wines he does, even got a couple of tastes from two vats of Cab that won't be out until the end of this year – just spectacular. Go. Go. Go. Then send me a picture to let me know you did and how right I was.
Bedford Winery in Los Alamos is an absolute, hands down, don't care how long it takes to get there even if it's out of the way, stop on any wine tour. Possibly the best part of the Bedford tasting experience was when the owner, Stephan, greeted us with a “What do you want? Don't you know it's too early for this shit?” look then a grunt in response to our asking if he was in fact open or if he'd just forgotten to close and lock the door. Normally, that would have put us off for the rest of the tasting but as it turns out Stephan Bedford is a treasure trove of wine-making and local knowledge. Once we got past his gruff exterior we found ourselves in a veritable viticulture 101 class in the middle of his tasting room. I can't blame him really, it was 10am on a Sunday afternoon. A time for repentance not revelry. Plus my recollection is the LG said something to the effect of “I'm not driving, what do I care, let's get hammered.” It also didn't hurt that everything he poured us was delicious. I can highly recommend the 07 Archive Syrah as well as the 08 Arroyo Grande Pinot but really it's all so good it will make it nearly impossible to choose. Also, and it kills me to say this because I just know someone out there will wind up buying the last case before we can – the 2000 and 2001 Cabernet Franc's are some of the most stupendous wines my giant tongue has ever been lucky enough to have splash across it. Yet another reason to stop here, they sell library wines at half off the case! Incredible. And if any of you snag the last case I swear I'll hunt you down, crash on your couch and drink it all with you one weekend.
Finally, Star Lane Dierberg Vineyards. Wow. Just... WOW. Simply stupendous wines from top to bottom. Wine so good that the everyday supermarket wine they make under the label Three Saints we recently passed off as high end gourmet vino at a party. It's tough to say which of their wines we were most impressed with, probably the Star Lane Merlot but their Dierberg Pinot and the Estate Blend were in a close tie for second. My only criticism of this winery (and it's hardly a criticism) is that they strike me as so high end that I almost feel uncomfortable drinking them. Just as I wouldn't feel natural behind the wheel of a Benz (unless it was about thirty years old and a diesel), I feel like the Star Lane Dierberg wines that we brought home are almost too precious to handle. They weren't terribly expensive – mostly because I didn't buy them, the LG did – the tasting room wasn't uber-fancy and the staff certainly didn't come off with that obnoxious I-just-got-my-sommelier certification attitude but there is just something about the wine that makes me feel like it needs to be coddled. I'm sure I'll get past it shortly into my second glass but it's worth mentioning simply because I'm not a fancy guy and this wine feels fancy.
Okay. That's it for Part I of our wine trip. Part II to come shortly.
Let's start with Sarzotti Vineyards in Templeton. Make this an early stop on your next tour of Paso and don't plan on leaving until closing time. This place is run by two of the nicest, most interesting people you will ever have the good fortune to meet. The Sarzotti's treat everyone that steps into their tasting room like family. And good, close family too. Not like your sweaty, drunk uncle that nobody wants to sit next to because he smells like gym socks even though you know he hasn't seen the inside of a gym in at least a decade and hasn't worn socks with his boat shoes for nearly as long. No, these folks either don't have those kind of family members or are too sweet to notice when one like them shows up. The LG and I got there around 1pm and spent a solid two hours plus tasting. The Barrel Reserve Cab's (both an 06 and an 07) were the absolute stand outs but in all seriousness there was not a bad sip in the bunch. They've got a 07 Syrah that will blow your mind, hell, even their table wine (aptly named Vin Tavola) is out of this world. We took the guided tour, got a blow by blow from the winemaker as to how and why he makes the wines he does, even got a couple of tastes from two vats of Cab that won't be out until the end of this year – just spectacular. Go. Go. Go. Then send me a picture to let me know you did and how right I was.
Bedford Winery in Los Alamos is an absolute, hands down, don't care how long it takes to get there even if it's out of the way, stop on any wine tour. Possibly the best part of the Bedford tasting experience was when the owner, Stephan, greeted us with a “What do you want? Don't you know it's too early for this shit?” look then a grunt in response to our asking if he was in fact open or if he'd just forgotten to close and lock the door. Normally, that would have put us off for the rest of the tasting but as it turns out Stephan Bedford is a treasure trove of wine-making and local knowledge. Once we got past his gruff exterior we found ourselves in a veritable viticulture 101 class in the middle of his tasting room. I can't blame him really, it was 10am on a Sunday afternoon. A time for repentance not revelry. Plus my recollection is the LG said something to the effect of “I'm not driving, what do I care, let's get hammered.” It also didn't hurt that everything he poured us was delicious. I can highly recommend the 07 Archive Syrah as well as the 08 Arroyo Grande Pinot but really it's all so good it will make it nearly impossible to choose. Also, and it kills me to say this because I just know someone out there will wind up buying the last case before we can – the 2000 and 2001 Cabernet Franc's are some of the most stupendous wines my giant tongue has ever been lucky enough to have splash across it. Yet another reason to stop here, they sell library wines at half off the case! Incredible. And if any of you snag the last case I swear I'll hunt you down, crash on your couch and drink it all with you one weekend.
Finally, Star Lane Dierberg Vineyards. Wow. Just... WOW. Simply stupendous wines from top to bottom. Wine so good that the everyday supermarket wine they make under the label Three Saints we recently passed off as high end gourmet vino at a party. It's tough to say which of their wines we were most impressed with, probably the Star Lane Merlot but their Dierberg Pinot and the Estate Blend were in a close tie for second. My only criticism of this winery (and it's hardly a criticism) is that they strike me as so high end that I almost feel uncomfortable drinking them. Just as I wouldn't feel natural behind the wheel of a Benz (unless it was about thirty years old and a diesel), I feel like the Star Lane Dierberg wines that we brought home are almost too precious to handle. They weren't terribly expensive – mostly because I didn't buy them, the LG did – the tasting room wasn't uber-fancy and the staff certainly didn't come off with that obnoxious I-just-got-my-sommelier certification attitude but there is just something about the wine that makes me feel like it needs to be coddled. I'm sure I'll get past it shortly into my second glass but it's worth mentioning simply because I'm not a fancy guy and this wine feels fancy.
Okay. That's it for Part I of our wine trip. Part II to come shortly.
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