Wine Each Week ~ Eberle 2018 Syrah

If you are Gary Eberle, you have a lot of firsts next to your name. One of those was that he was one the first to plant the Syrah grape in Paso Robles, even though grapes have been in the ground in Paso since the 1880s. And he was the very first to produce a 100% Syrah. For many years Gary has sourced his Syrah from the Steinbeck Vineyard. This Syrah straddles that warm climate, cool climate where you get a little bit of both vibrant dark black and red fruits blackberry blueberry boysenberry red raspberry, but also some of those dark earthy notes saddle, leather, slight bacon smokiness. Just under 2% Viognier is co-fermented then aged for 15 months in both French and American oak. There is also plentiful acidity making this a fine red wine for a diversity of foods.

1,418 cases.

ORIGIN: Paso Robles, California

ALCOHOL: 14.6%

PRICE: $32 (750ML)

SCORE: 91 POINTS

EBERLE

Flipping You The Bird: Improper Wines For Thanksgiving

There is this weirdly compulsive thing these days to pair wine with your food, as if searching for and experiencing the “perfect pairing” is tantamount to Indian Jones discovering the Covenant of the Ark. Yes, I admit I’ve written about that too (uh, the pairings, not the Ark), and certainly wine and food are crucially important – not to mention I’ve reviewed restaurants professionally for a decade. The point being…drink whatever the hell you want with whatever the hell you want to eat. No more elusive pairings and “ideal” wine for turkey day. Having said that…I would like to see these wines on your table.

2014 IL Tascante

Soft and quiet, this is not a loud wine; it’s understated and you’ve probably never had this grape before – Nerello Mascalase. Grown on volcanic soils on the north-east slope of the volcano Mt. Etna in Sicily, there is an earthiness, a mineral note, a chalkiness with this wine. There is muted raspberry, cranberry, and rhubarb with back notes of Bing cherry. Though aged in Slovenian oak barrels for 18 months, you hardly notice any oak at all, more a testament of the lithe but structured fruit. And it is this subtleness that makes this wine so compelling. Well, that and the fact the family has been doing the wine thing for two centuries. ($50)

2015 Sonoma-Loeb Pinot Noir Dutton Ranch

Out of the Russian River Valley the good folks at Sonoma-Loeb turn out a lot of great wine and this Pinot, from a well-established vineyard is part of a great lineage. All Pinot all the time this make-up of clones 667, 777 and 115 was fermented using native yeast and aged for just 11 months in French oak. 11 months is correct because you don’t want this beautiful fruit to get lost in some kind of cedar box. Black cherry, red currant, candied cranberry, star anise, cola and soft baking spices round out this rich, but pure iteration of Pinot. Great acidity and mild tannins make this work with damn near whatever you put on the table, or, better yet, get some cheese and have at it. ($40)

2016 Ritual Chardonnay

Chardonnay, again, really? Yes, really. This bright crisp Chardonnay from Chile is expressive, young, and fresh with a tanginess and food-worthy acidity. You’ll easily pick up on the lemon curd, kiwi, gooseberry, lime kefir, and green apple notes, and more subtly the hazelnut, mango and quince. The fruit hails from the Casablanca Valley, just 18 miles from the coast, and is whole cluster fermented in concrete eggs (which helps immensely with viscosity) and then gets a wee bit of oak time, so you’re left with a robust white wine that plays well with others. ($21.99)

2016 Steele Viognier

Viognier, the odd named grape most people mispronounce, is one of those, cool-if-it’s-done-right wines. And Jed Steele does it right. All the way from Lake County, this offers lychee, honeysuckle, Meyer lemon, lime curd and sugared almond. A beautiful viscosity and silkiness makes the floral components of this wine that much more provocative. It’s fermented in stainless steel so it retains a bright buoyancy but is not too heavy and flowery. A mere four month of oak time allows this wine to achieve a balance of fruit, acidity and wood. ($19)

Summer in Winter – Imagining Sauvignon Blanc

It’s nearing Thanksgiving here in Santa Barbara where I live. And no, it’s not really winter here, nor even cold. In Santa Barbara winter is merely like a cool summer, but regardless in the cooler months people inexplicably drink more red wine. But hold on…white wine is still ideal for winter, too. To prove my point the 2015 Wow Oui (wow-wee) from Imagery Estate Winery in Glen Ellen is, literally, like summer in your glass. The bright, vivacious, crisp and fresh Sauvignon Blanc with a touch of Muscat (18%) and a wee bit of Viognier (3%) makes this not only a surprise, but also a pretty damn good wine made by Joe Benziger. Lemon-lime, tangerine, hibiscus, watermelon, floral notes of rose and lavender all represent. This is a very balanced wine with food friendly acidity - ideal with a chili-lime seasoning on chicken, fish or tofu. Plus, the label art was done by Penelope Gottlieb of…Santa Barbara! Just over 1,000 cases were made so there’s a good chance you can still find some on their site as they are not available nationally (bummer). So, perk up and pucker up ‘cause this wow is yes.

ORIGIN: Pine Mountain/Cloverdale Peak, California

PRICE: $27/ 750ML

ALCOHOL: 14.1%

BOOZEHOUNDZ SCORE:  89 POINTS