Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have crossed my doorstep recently.
This week featured an interesting assortment of wines, including a new sparkling wine from Valdemar Estates in Washington State. I’ll be honest, I haven’t had a lot of bubbles from Washington, but this wine certainly suggested that more of them ought to be made. It was bright and fresh, with a nice purity.
I also got a new wine to taste from Amulet Estate in Napa, a winery owned by a group of investors under the direction of Managing Partner Nathaniel Dorn. Sourced from one of Napa’s crown jewels, the Proof Vineyard, this wine is a nice blend of Sauvignon Blanc with a high percentage (35% of Semillòn) plus 10% of the white field blend that continues to populate this 150+-year-old vineyard. Given the economic pressures on real estate and winery finances in Napa, it’s something of a miracle that a 19th-century vineyard sporting white grapes has remained in the ground in the heart of Napa Valley. It’s a delicious wine, even though it comes in an offensively heavy bottle, which implies the owners care more about projecting an image of luxury than taking care of the environment.
I’ve got a few New Zealand wines to recommend this week starting with two Sauvignon Blancs. The first, from Smith & Sheth offers a textbook expression of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with a hint of that characteristic cat scent as a grace note. Smith & Sheth is the negociant label of Steve Smith MW and his investor partner Brian Sheth, who are perhaps better known for being, as of 2017, owners of the legendary Pyramid Valley Vineyards. Smith has long been a well-known name in New Zealand for having been one of the founders of Craggy Range.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, that bottle of Smith & Sheth Sauvignon Blanc was accompanied by a bottle of Pyramid Valley Sauvignon Blanc, which offered somewhat next-level crystalline purity and elegance (a word that isn’t often used for Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc). I highly recommend it if you can find it somewhere and don’t mind paying a slight premium. The grapes come from the famed Churton Vineyard, which is biodynamically farmed and one of the most beautiful sites in Marlborough.
Sticking with these two brands for the moment, I can also highly recommend both of their Chardonnays. The Smith & Sheth version comes from near Hawke’s Bay on the North Island, while the Pyramid Valley wine is from near the home estate in North Canterbury, on the South Island. Both are brimming with a zingy combination of fruit and bright acidity that instantly charms.
Two respective Pinots from each don’t quite have the same punch as the Chardonnays but they are also worth looking at, especially as they are much more affordable than the top-end bottlings from Pyramid Valley, which I’ll be reviewing next week.
Making a brief stop in Europe on our way home to California, let’s dally for a moment on a hillside of pink granite in Beaujolias (where I happen to be headed tomorrow, coincidentally). Winemaker Jonathan Pey might be a name familiar to my readers, as I’ve reviewed his Pey-Marin for years, as well as his Textbook Cabernet from Napa. He’s since shut down Pey-Marin, and sold Textbook. For his next act, he’s acquired some old vineyards in Morgon and Fleurie and is now living in France (though still making two other small US brands, Forager and Spice Rack). His Domaine Jonathan Pey Morgon is (forgive me) a textbook interpretation of Gamay, unsullied by oak or overt winemaker effort. It’s fresh, pure, and a great expression of the grape and the place. I can’t wait to taste his Fleurie.
Finally, closer to home, the folks at Gary Farrell Vineyards in the Russian River Valley sent through two of their top single-vineyard bottlings of Pinot Noir. It’s been some time since I tasted a Gary Farrell wine, and I was quite pleased with the quality of both of these wines. My favorite of the two was the Martaella Vineyard bottling, but the Hallberg was no slouch. Both were juicy and bright and full of finesse.
Notes on all these below.
Tasting Notes
2020 Valdemar Estates “Brut Methode Traditionelle” Sparkling Chardonnay, Columbia Valley, Washington
Pale gold in the glass with moderately sized bubbles, this wine smells of lemon curd, lemon pith, and a hint of honey. In the mouth, lemon, pear, and apple flavors have a bright zing to them and a light, coarse mousse. I love the salinity of this wine, which ends with salty lemon peel and orange zest. Excellent acidity. 12.2% alcohol. Only 50 cases made. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $65.
2021 Amulet Estate “AE” White Blend, Napa Valley, Napa, California
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of green apple and lemon with a hint of kiwi. In the mouth, juicy lemon and grapefruit flavors mix with green apple and a touch of white flowers, as a whisper of vanilla and lemon oil emerges in the finish. Nicely balanced, bright, and juicy, with well-integrated oak. A blend of 55% Sauvignon Vert, 35% Semillòn, and 10% a mix of “other white grapes” from the Proof Vineyard, which was planted in the 1870s and contains things like Green Hungarian, Palomino, and Chasselas. 13.7% alcohol. Comes in a nasty, heavy bottle, weighing 1.62 kg when full. Score: around 9. Cost: $85. click to buy.
2023 Smith & Sheth “CRU – Wairau” Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, New Zealand
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of passionfruit and green apple with a hint of cat pee and wet stone. In the mouth, green apple and passionfruit flavors are zippy with excellent acidity and mouthwatering brightness. Score: around 9. Cost: $25. click to buy.
2023 Pyramid Valley “Pastures Collection – Weaver” Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, New Zealand
Palest gold to near colorless in the glass, this wine smells of green apple, passionfruit, and a bit of orange peel. In the mouth, the wine has a lightly tannic grip to it with flavors of lime zest, green apple, passionfruit, and wet chalkboard minerality. Long finish. Quite delicious. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $32. click to buy.
2021 Pyramid Valley “Pastures Collection – Springs” Chardonnay, North Canterbury, New Zealand
Palest gold in the glass, this wine smells of lemon curd, white flowers, and wet slate. In the mouth, the wine is fantastically bright with great acidity and a mouthwatering combination of resinous lemon pith, pink grapefruit, and floral notes. A hint of kumquat lingers in the finish. Very delicious. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $60.
2021 Smith & Sheth “CRU – Heretaunga” Chardonnay, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand
Pale greenish gold in the glass, this wine has a smoky aroma, like struck flint layered over resinous lemon oil. In the mouth, lemon curd, pastry cream, and a hint of grapefruit are flinty in quality with great acidity and a long, bright, juicy finish. Delicious. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $43. click to buy.
2022 Domaine Jonathan Pey “Bellevue” Gamay, Morgon, Beaujolais, Burgundy, France
Medium to dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of boysenberry and blood oranges. In the mouth, silky flavors of blood orange and boysenberry mix with a touch of meatiness and a hint of struck match. Excellent acidity and a really nice stony underbelly make for a lovely package. Vines planted in 1953 at 400 meters / 1300 feet of altitude in pink granite soils that are farmed organically with some biodynamic practices and worked with horses. High-density plantings at 10,400 vines per hectare. Fermented with 30% whole cluster and spends 10 months in tank with 8% of the wine in French oak barrels. 13.4% alcohol. Score: around 9. Cost: $35. click to buy.
2019 Gary Farrell Winery “Hallberg Vineyard” Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma, California
Light garnet in color, this wine smells of chopped green herbs and raspberries. In the mouth, tangy sour cherry and raspberry flavors mix with a hint of citrus peel and aromatic green herbs amidst vibrant, juicy acidity. Tannins are barely a wisp of texture in the mouth. 14.1% alcohol. Certified sustainable. Score: around 9. Cost: $80. click to buy.
2019 Gary Farrell Winery “Martaella Vineyard” Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma, California
Light to medium garnet in color, this wine smells of raspberry and cranberry fruit layered over wet chalkboard. In the mouth, faintly saline flavors of raspberry and cranberry mix with sour cherry and fantastic, mouthwatering acidity. Notes of kumquat and orange peel emerge on the salty finish. Young, but quite delicious. Barely perceptible tannins. 13.7% alcohol. Certified sustainable. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $75. click to buy.
2021 Smith & Sheth “CRU – Kawarau” Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand
Medium garnet in the glass, this wine smells of cranberry and dusty roads, with hints of cherry and raspberry. In the mouth, earthy cranberry flavors mix with dried herbs amidst good acidity and a clean freshness. 14% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $45.
2021 Pyramid Valley “Pastures Collection – Manata” Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand
Medium to dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of stony earth and berries. In the mouth, light grippy tannins wrap around a core of cherry and raspberry fruit shot through with dried herbs. Nice stony qualities make the wine feel clean and crisp, enhanced with excellent acidity. Score: around 9. Cost: $35.
