August 2, 2024 – It’s that rosé and crisp white wine time of year and believe me we have some good local ones to taste right now. Like a long slow swim in a cool Olympic sized pool, these wines are perfect for this eternal summer, relentlessly punctuated by heat waves that remind me of dragon’s breath. Here are a few gold medal winners to quench your thirst while you’re taking in the rest of competition at the Olympics. Go Team USA!
2023 Beauregard Rosé of Pinot Noir, Oeuf en Baton, Coast Grade Vineyard – In a word, this is joyous. Pale pink with a bit of salmon and a copper core, this ethereal wine expresses joie de vivre. There is a light-heartedness about it that makes every sip a celebration. At 13.5%, it is fully ripe fruit, leaning to wild strawberry, rhubarb, and crisp white peach. This rosé is blessed with abundant acid and a tang that smacks of fresh navel orange. Done in concrete barrel, there is no steel to give it a twang, as it sure doesn’t need any of that. And there’s no oak to weigh it down. Fly away, Peter Pan! This is a dream rosé that can really soar. You’ll swear it’s evaporating.
2023 Beauregard Carbonic Macerated Pinot Noir, Coast Grade Vineyard – Give Ryan Beauregard credit for maximizing a crop of which he had a reasonable abundance last year, and that was Pinot Noir. Using carbonic maceration, commonly employed in Beaujolais, the grapes were picked whole cluster, then placed inside an airtight stainless-steel tank. They are then blanketed with CO2 to create an anaerobic atmosphere, in which the individual grapes undergo their own closed loop fermentations. Eventually, the alcohol by product, causes the berries to burst, releasing the juice. It’s basically a pop rocks party. Like Beaujolais wines, which are praised for their irresistibly juicy fruitiness, the resulting wine soars with bright acidity. You can’t help but love the spicy brightness, and it would be awesome with lighter fare, like salmon salad, an omelet with shrimp and chopped tomato, or macerated strawberries and burrata.
2023 CRŪ Winery Pinot Gris Sierra Madre Vineyard – CRŪ Winery specializes in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but is not limited to those varieties, branching out to Albarino and now Pinot Gris. Usually, I turn to Anderson Valley or Oregon if I’m hankering for a good PG. But this Sierra Madre example, snatched off the vine at the perfect alcohol of 13%, shows oodles of sweet spring fresh mown hay, lemongrass, white lilies and even peonies in the nose. The palate is crisp with fresh lime, bright green apple and a touch of Bartlett pear, as it flits by, all flinty and light on its feet. This is seriously good stuff.
If you like bright whites, CRŪ Winery is holding a special tasting of Bright Whites this weekend, Saturday, Aug 3rd and Sunday, Aug 4th, from 11:00am until 5:00pm, at their tasting room in Soledad (the former Paraiso tasting room on Foothill). I’m hoping they pour this Pinot Gris and their excellent Albarino.
2023 CRŪ Winery Jose’s Rosé of Grenache, Zeferino Vineyard, San Luis Obispo – Snappy as an onshore breeze, this wine, made of Grenache from the Arroyo Grande sub-AVA of San Luis Obispo, has aromas of sun-dried linen, cardamom, fresh cut rhubarb, cilantro, white pepper, thyme and white currant, with flavors leaning towards tangy white currant, rosemary, white pepper and crisp watermelon. The texture is delicate, with an open weave, and the slightly herbal note makes it a natural pair with shrimp and pork dumplings with cilantro or green onion pancakes. Winemaker Jose Reyes makes a different rosé each year, and this one is certainly a standout for those who prefer something quite the opposite of fruit-forward.
Just a reminder that if you’re a chef and you want to be part of the CRŪ Chowder Cookoff in September, send in your recipes in by Monday, August 6th to be considered. It would be very cool to see the CRU Pinot Gris paired with a fennel and leek chowder, topped with pine nuts and lime infused olive oil. That would be a winning combo. I could see the Jose’s Rosé with a potato and chile chowder topped with cilantro. Send recipes to: Rebecca@cruwineco.com
Chowder recipes will be judged on creativity, overall quality and how well the recipes pair with the variety of CRŪ Winery’s single vineyard Chardonnays. From the recipes submitted, the winery will select two runners-up who will receive a 2-night stay in Monterey, California. During their trip, the runners-up will participate in the Chowder Cook-Off, September 21, at CRŪ Winery’s Santa Lucia Highlands Tasting Room. At the event they will prepare their chowder recipe for a panel of judges who will determine the best chowder recipe and crown the Chowder Cook-Off Champion.
The Chowder Cook-Off event on Saturday, September 21, will be open to the public. Attendees will get to watch the Chowder Cook-Off and try the final chowder recipes paired with CRŪ wines. In addition, attendees will be able to enjoy chowder and artisan bites from Phresh Catering, Real Good Fish and A Party for your Palate.
Just a reminder that Pete’s Fish House will pop open for one day, on Monday, August 5, to celebrate National Oyster Day. The culinary team will be serving up oysters from Hog Island, so come on by between 12pm and 8:30pm, and have some bubbles or a glass of rosé. I’m really excited to see how this wine list — as well as the menu offering—comes together. They plan to soft open in mid-August.
Speaking of wine lists, I spied the 2022 Florez Sonoma Mountain Chardonnay, done with skin contact, at Orchard City Kitchen in Campbell today. The label is certainly fetching, and the wine makes the kind of statement that compliments the sort of boldly flavored cuisine that this spot, recently featured on “Check Please! Bay Area,” serves up.
About the author
Laura Ness is a longtime wine journalist, columnist and judge who contributes regularly to Edible Monterey Bay, Spirited, WineOh.Tv, Los Gatos Magazine and Wine Industry Network, and a variety of consumer publications. Her passion is telling stories about the intriguing characters who inhabit the fascinating world of wine and food.
