Furthermore Sierra Mar Pinot Noir Named Best of Monterey County

March 15, 2022 – Getting to King City off of southbound 101 is a bit like driving through a pinball machine these days, as they are splitting the north and southbound lanes into separate bridges on the north side of town. The lanes are incredibly narrow, with concrete walls on both sides: definitely not conducive to high-speed maneuvers.  Wonder how self-driving cars are handling these?

Despite the exciting approach to town, it was another fun weekend in the City of King for the judges who made the annual pilgrimage to the home of the Monterey Wine Competition. In its 29^th year, the competition was started by the late Robert Whitley, and is now run by his colleague Rich Cook, of Wine Reviews Online. The Competition, like many in California, is done in conjunction with a Fair, in this case, it’s the Salinas Valley Fair, held May 12—15 this year. In addition to livestock auction, horse show, rodeo, barrel races and exhibits, a public tasting of the winning wines will also be held.

As for the Competition, the numbers keep going up and the breadth of wines being submitted expands every year. One thing is always certain, there will be discoveries made and new winners crowned. And every year, it’s a true delight to chat with all the volunteers who make this competition possible: schoolteachers, physical therapists, shop owners, farmers and ranchers. 

Of all the Platinum wines Cook and Belding evaluated this year, they chose the 2019 Lightpost Cabernet Sauvignon ($65) from Paso Robles as Best Red and Wine of the Year. Made by winemaker Christian Roguenant, a Frenchman who always has the best stories, this wine reflects what makes Paso Robles Cab so very appealing. Lightpost Winery is in Morgan Hill, where they have a tasting room, and a dizzying array of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet and blends from a range of AVAs. 

With the highest score of any Monterey area wine at 96 points, the Furthermore 2018 Sierra Mar Pinot Noir was named Best of Monterey. This producer, located on Highway 116 north of Sebastopol in Graton, specializes in single vineyard Pinot Noir, including several from the Santa Lucia Highlands. Congratulations to Furthermore for the win and for also scoring Platinum for their 2018 Rosella’s Vineyard Pinot Noir as well!

Each judging panel typically has at least one winemaker, and a wine journalist and/or wine industry buyer or other professional. Each group has the responsibility of awarding Silver, Gold and Platinum medals to their allotted wine selections, with the latter wines going to Rich and his sommelier compadre, Wayne Belding, to evaluate, award points and write tasting notes.

Watching all the Platinum winners stack up on the table at the head of the room is pretty exciting. Familiar names like Reustle Prayer Rock from Oregon, V. Sattui from Napa, and local star, De Tierra, with a tasting room in Carmel, who won Best of Monterey last year with their 2016 Syrah, sit side-by-side new brands, usually from Scheid Family Wines. 

This year, the De Tierra 2016 Bordeaux blend “Frannin” was awarded Platinum by my panel. We also had the pleasure of sending up the 2021 J.Lohr Arroyo Seco Flume Crossing Sauvignon Blanc (fantastic), the 2020 Carol Shelton Coquille Blanc (Paso Robles), the 2018 Photograph Cabernet Sauvignon (North Coast), 2018 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon (North Coast) and the 2018 BoaVentura de Caires Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (Livermore). They were all wonderful, and I can’t tell you how refreshing to taste such a range of different styles of Cabernet.

According to Cook, there were 16 local Monterey wines that scored 92 points or higher at this competition. Hooray for Monterey! Scheid Family Wines, celebrating their 50^th anniversary this year, had the most wines in the Platinum and Gold categories, with four, and J. Lohr and Delicato Family with three each.

Local Platinum and Gold Award Winners:

• Platinum 96 Furthermore 2018 Sierra Mar Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands, $55 (Furthermore Wines, Graton)
• Platinum 95 Diora 2019 La Grande Lumiére Chardonnay, San Bernabe Vineyard, Estate Grown Monterey, $40.00 (Delicato Family Wines) 
• Platinum 94 J. Lohr Estates 2021 Flume Crossing Sauvigon Blanc, Arroyo Seco, $14.00 (J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines)
• Platinum 94 Long Valley Ranch 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Vineyards Monterey County, $19.95 (Scheid Family Wines)
• Platinum 94 Ocean Breeze 2019 Chardonnay Monterey County, $19.99 (Wine Insiders) 
• Platinum 94 Aristotle 2020 Petite Sirah Monterey County, $12.99 (Scheid Family Wines)
• Platinum 94 Furthermore Wines 2018 Pinot Noir Rosella’s Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands, $60 (Furthermore Wines, Graton)
• Gold 93 J. Lohr Monterey Roots 2021 Wildflower Valdiguie Arroyo Seco $13.00 (J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines)
• Gold 93 Long Valley Ranch 2020 Chardonnay Estate Vineyards, Monterey County, $17.95 (Scheid Family Wines)
• Gold 93 Hive & Honey 2020 Gewürztraminer Estate Vineyards, Monterey County, $7.99 (Scheid Family Wines)
• Gold 93 SEAGLASS 2020 Rosé, Monterey County, $12.00 (Trinchero Family Estates) Gold 93 De Tierra 2017 Chardonnay Santa Lucia Highlands, $39.00 (De Tierra) 
• Gold 92 J. Lohr Vineyard Series 2019 Fog’s Reach Pinot, Noir Arroyo Seco, $35.00 (J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines)
• Gold 92 Diora 2019 Chardonnay La Splendeur du Soleil, Monterey, $19.99 (Delicato Family Wines)
• Gold 92 Diora 2019 La Grande Majesté Pinot Noir, San Bernabe Vineyard, Estate Grown Monterey, $40.00 (Delicato Family Wines)
• Gold 92 Redwick Estate 2019 Vintner’s Blend, Monterey County, $14.95 (Scheid Family Wines) 

Best White was a tie between the 2020 Reustle Prayer Rock Grüner Veltliner from Umpqua Valley (Oregon), the 2019 Diora 2019 La Grande Lumiére Chardonnay and the 2021 Duck Hunter Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand.  All worthy. 

Best Sparkling was a tie between a popular grocery store brand, the 2020 La Marca Prosecco DOCG Rosé, and the 2019 V. Sattui Prestige Cuvée Blanc from Anderson Valley. 

Best Rosé went to the 2020 SEAGLASS Rosé from Monterey County ($12), and Best Dessert was awarded to the 2020 Macchia “Dangerous Port” from Linsteadt Vineyard in Amador County.  

Tasting through the vast tables of medal winners, I discovered these wines that caught my attention:

2021 Eberle Côtes-du-Rôbles Rosé  – juicy, chin-dribbling summer fruits

2020 Idle Hour Blanc de Blancs – classy mouuse, sophisticated, dry 

2020 Tackitt Family Vineyards Sparkling Petite Sirah – nervy, satisfying, rich

2018 Halter Ranch “Libelle” Sparkling Picpoul Blanc – brisk, refreshing, sassy

2021 J. Lohr Riesling – sweetly seductive, with a beautiful silk-screened label

2021 Seaglass Riesling – just short of overtly sweet, with nice apricot notes

This year, the judging panel that finished their tasks first were able to pick which spirits we got to judge. Seems everyone wanted tequila.  It was fortunate we got second pick, because our flight of bourbons was particularly compelling. The two platinum winners were both from Texas-based Garrison Brothers. Mighty powerful beverages, these, with a slight nod going to the port barrel aged small batch bourbon ($124) with its wonderful banana bread aromatics and super smooth finish and the “sleeper award” going to the Garrison single barrel American whiskey ($109), lighter and younger, redolent of red currant and apple. Both perfect for a night when the fog rolls in, or better yet, when it rains.