The Sloan Sakai booth will have an excellent selection of wines available during the CALPELRA Reception/Wine Tasting scheduled for Wednesday, November 17th starting at 5 PM.
Firm Senior Counsel and Wine & Spirits Director Justin Otto Sceva has chosen five delectable wines that cover a wide range of palettes. For a preview of what we will be pouring at Booth #47 next Wednesday, please see below.
Domaine Carneros 2015 Estate Brut Cuvee. Classic Champagne-style sparkling wine from the house of Taittinger. 51% Chardonnay, 47% Pinot Noir, 2% Pinot Gris, and 100% delicious. Cross your fingers, if all goes well, we’ll be pouring this from a 6L Methusaleh (e.g., a big bottle holding the equivalent to eight regular bottles)!
Lichen Estate 2013 “Brut Blanc de Gris.” Because one sparkling wine is never enough, and after the past year and a half you deserve something special. This unusual 100% Pinot Gris sparkler from Anderson Valley is a seriously impressive wine – Lichen Estate’s regular still Pinot Gris is excellent and highly recommended, but this low-production sparkling version takes it to the next level. Poured from magnums.
Lioco Wine Company 2020 “Kick-on Ranch” Gruner Veltliner. Lioco Wine Company consistently puts out hugely food-friendly, minimally-manipulated wines with a rare purity of flavor. We’re going to pour the recently released inaugural vintage of an organic Gruner Veltliner from Kick-on Ranch, a tiny, cold, and windy vineyard in western Los Alamos (Santa Barbara County), close to the Vandenberg Air Force Base. This is a wine with a lot of personality, with tons of interesting flavors and aromas (lime, salty honey, a touch of fennel, lemon pith and wet limestone) that reward paying attention, but at the same time its straight up tasty and easy to appreciate. Good stuff!
Drew Family Vineyards 2019 “The Fog Eater” Pinot Noir. One of two regional blends made by Jason Drew, “Fog Eater” is made from grapes grown in several sites throughout the “deep end” (e.g., the coldest part) of Anderson Valley. Wonderfully balanced and elegant, especially for such a young wine, but also vibrant and full of refreshing acidity. Red fruit leaning towards cranberry and pomegranate, rose petals, mushroom, and a hint of forest floor.
Ashes & Diamonds 2016 “Mountain Cuvee No. 1, Saffron Vineyard.” Ashes & Diamonds was started by Kashy Khaledi (son of the founder of Darioush) as a “love letter” to Napa’s iconic wines from the 1960’s and early 1970’s, when grapes were harvested earlier, less new oak was used, alcohol levels were lower and bigger wasn’t necessarily better. Far more than just a hipster favorite (though they are certainly that as well), they have been putting out some exceptionally stunning, subtle, and complex wines. This bottle is vintage No.1 (No. 2 was released just a couple of months ago) of a beautiful Right-Bank Bordeaux-style blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc, organically grown at 1,500 feet on Mt. Veeder and vinified by the inimitable Diana Snowden Seysses. Poured from magnum.
We hope to see you and enjoy these vintages with you in Monterey!