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Thanks Morgan for the description - can’t wait to try this. I’m in the same camp that Alsace VT can get cloying fast. I haven’t had one of the old Ravenswoods, but I had an enchanting 2001 Williams Selyem Vista Verde a couple months ago. I noted plenty of acid and a finish that “caresses the palate like a warm blanket on a cold fall day.” ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
What is the sweet wine challenge Morgan? Fruit or winemaking?
I called Chris to say congrats but want to tell you the podcasts are just fantastic man.
Geez, I just got the purchases from the last TWO releases like two weeks ago!
For those who haven’t experienced it and enjoy the way these good folks make wine, Oakville Farmhouse is well worth the effort of clicking that box on the order form. I’m excited for that one. It’s truly unique - I just opened my first after buying for a good several years now, and I’m glad I’ve been buying. Deep, and many dimensioned, like a vacation to 10 places all at once. Is that a wine descriptor?
Just received notice of another case on its way of 2019 OVZ I ordered with the fall shipment awhile back that I totally didn’t remember. How could I be so forgetful?
Down here in Southern California we’re still waiting delivery of our summer order. Latest estimate was next week, and, at this time, the weather is looking acceptable.
I’m not complaining, Chris/Morgan. I do appreciate the care that you take. 
Similar PSA for Under the Mountain. A unique heritage blend in the Bedrock profile.
And Pato too. Tobacco, blue fruits, licorice. Drinks like a cab, but I think it’s a Zin based blend.
Any advance tasting notes Morgan?
Sure! Here they are- we are hoping to have the podcast up going over the wines tomorrow as well.
2019 Cuvee Karatas, Sonoma Valley
One of my favorite wines, and the first white wine we ever made back in 2008, has made a comeback. After two years off from receiving the ancient Semillon at Monte Rosso, we were offered a small amount in 2019 and jumped at the opportunity. The wine, modeled after Bordeaux Blanc, is barrel fermented in a mix of new and used French oak barrels and also contains some Sauvignon Blanc from Uboldi and Judge Vineyard. For us, the fig-laced richness of the Semillon blends beautifully with the high-tone perfume and trace of tropical from the Sauvignon Blanc— making for a complex and age-worthy wine. Though this can certainly be enjoyed in its youth, we find that the 2009 and 2010 are drinking pretty wonderfully right now. $39
2019 Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley
After losing Chuy Vineyard after the 2017 vintage, we had been looking for a site that inspired the desire to make Chardonnay again. Enter the 1973 own-rooted plantings at the famed Bien Nacido Vineyard in Santa Maria Valley. This extraordinarily cold site, situated near the Syrah we get from “X” block in the oldest section of the vineyard, is planted on limestone rich soils within view of the ocean on a clear day. The result is a Chardonnay possessing mineral drive and purity. The small amount of fruit we received fermented slowly in three 500-liter Stockinger barrels (it took nearly a year to go dry) with a total elevage of 15 months. The wine went through malolactic but received no battonage/stirring in order to preserve site expression and tension. This wine will reward decanting in its youth. $39
2019 California Syrah
Our “value” Syrah from 2019 is, as always, a blend of the several great Syrah sites around the state that we get to work with. A blend of the ultra-cool climate (Bien Nacido), cool climate (Hudson, Griffin’s Lair, Weill and Walker Vine Hill) and, for the first time, some Syrah from Bedrock Vineyard. Our hope is that this wine shows off the potential of this great variety in California. Fermented with indigenous yeast with all lots seeing some whole cluster percentage (20-100%), the wine showcases the dark pepper, perfume and elegance that Syrah can achieve at its best. This is our version of Crozes-Hermitage— distinctly Syrah but at a tariff that allows it to be good company for a weeknight repast. $20
2019 Pagani Ranch Heritage Wine, Sonoma Valley
From the venerated 1880s-planted site between Glen Ellen and Kenwood in northern Sonoma Valley, the 2019 Pagani Ranch is a classic rendition of this site. Always the last of the “Big Four” in Sonoma Valley to be picked (the others being Monte Rosso, Bedrock and Old Hill), Pagani always seems stylistically further removed from the other three than the mere three miles that separate it. Here, the field blend is laced with varieties that impart darkness and weight— Petite Sirah, Alicante Bouschet, Grand Noir, Lenoir and Petit Bouschet— which ramp up the intensity of a wine already framed around dramatic Zinfandel fruit. $42 (750ml), $100 (magnum)
2019 Oakville Farmhouse Heritage Wine, Oakville, Napa Valley
One of the most unique sites remaining in Napa and the oldest remaining vineyard in Oakville, the Farmhouse is a 1930s-planted field-blend of Negrette, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Mondeuse, Carignan, Chenin Blanc, Colombard and more. Only 2.5 acres, the vineyard is surrounded by some very well-known names (Promontory, Futo, etc.) on the western edge of Oakville, a Mookie Betts stone-throw from the historic border of H.W. Crabb’s To Kalon Vineyard. In 2019 the vineyard cropped at 1.25 tons per acre and rendered a dense, dark wine with remarkable peppery and violet-tinged aromatics. This is a glimpse into what wines from Oakville likely tasted like before being swept under a sea of modern Cabernet plantings. $65
2019 Pato Vineyard Heritage Wine, Contra Costa County
The 2019 Pato Heritage is perhaps my favorite we have made from the site. For the first time, it includes part of the vineyard planted in the 1940s we have historically sold to Turley for their great Duarte bottling that produces some dramatic and dense Zinfandel. This is blended with the old Mataro and Petite Sirah from the site to create a deeply fruited, dark and satisfying wine. As always, this shows off the richer and more unctuous side of Oakley and will be a great drinker on the earlier side with some decanting. From own-rooted vines planted in sand. $30
2019 Under the Mountain Heritage Wine, Santa Clara County
A classic vintage from this exceptional vineyard in Santa Clara County. Composed of Zinfandel and Carignan, with small amounts of Petite Sirah and Grenache, this coolly situated vineyard located north of Hecker Pass rendered a wine of deep color, dense fruit and typical brightness in 2019. Though the planting date is unknown, we are guessing these scant cropping vines (less than 1 ton per acre) were planted sometime in the 1910s or 1920s and are some of the last remaining old vines in a region that was once covered with vineyards. $42
2019 Monte Rosso Zinfandel, Moon Mountain District
A vineyard that needs little introduction. In 2019 we received a beautiful 2.5 tons of fruit from Block 32 at this “grand dame” of Sonoma Valley vineyards. As usual, it is defined by the lifted and graceful aromatics one gets from this mountain site, complemented by deep fruit and natural structure befitting its elevation. Though this site has always excelled, it has looked particularly dialed in under the oversight of current vineyard manager Brenae Royal and her team. Following fermentation with indigenous yeast, the wine was aged in French oak barrels ranging in size from 228 to 500 liters with roughly 20% of that oak being new. This is one of the best Bedrock wines from 2019. $55
2019 Schmiedt Road Zinfandel, Lodi
One of our favorite renderings of this bottling to date, the 2019 Schmiedt Road is predominately from our Katushas’ Vineyard located on the north side of Schmiedt Road along with a small amount of Kirschenman Vineyard planted to the south of the same small country lane. Both vineyards are located in an oxbow of the Mokelumne River, which makes for a cooler and more windswept environment than other parts of East Lodi. This, along with the sandy soils and own-rooted vines, makes for an elegant and bright rendering of Zinfandel from an area generally better known for bombast. $35
2019 Carlisle Vineyard Zinfandel, Russian River Valley
From Mike and Kendall Officer’s remarkable old vineyard located in the Piner-Olivet section of Russian River Valley, the 2019 Carlisle is an explosion of deep, blue-fruited Zinfandel goodness. The vineyard, planted in 1927, is predominately Zin, though also possesses an amazing array of rare interplanted varieties such as Albillo Mayor, Grec Rouge, Petit Bouschet and many more. As with many of the 2019s, this is going to be a wine that will shine on the earlier side, with plenty of the Russian River juiciness that is so alluring about the site. $42
2019 Weill a Way Syrah, Sonoma Valley
The steep slopes of Weill Vineyard produced a scant amount of typically substantial and theatrical Syrah. Co-fermented with Viognier and 40% whole-cluster for added perfume, this wine lands on the richer side of the Syrah scale for us (with Bien Nacido being at the other end). However, this site’s uncanny ability to showcase richesse while being leavened by the site’s naturally low pH and healthy acidity allows the wine to carry its fruit gracefully. Unfortunately, as we have lost a majority of the vineyard to Syrah-decline this offering will be in relatively short supply. $50
2018 Alta Vista Late Harvest Gewürztraminer
Oh hello… This is our first dessert wine since the 2011 Lachryma Montis Semillon (though not our first attempt—dessert wines are hard to make!) and we could not be more pleased with it. We have long wanted to make a sweet wine from the extraordinary Alta Vista vineyard, and after six years of rehabilitation, the once abandoned 1940’s-planted vineyard finally produced enough fruit for us to make both a dry and sweet version from the site. Located on the southwestern edge of Mt. Veeder in the Moon Mountain AVA, the mountain site always retains lots of acid, which helps balance the unctuousness of Gewürztraminer. Picked at 31.6 brix, the finished wine has 136 g/l of residual sugar and finished at 10.6% alcohol. My favorite dessert wines in the world, be it Sauternes, Vin de Paille, TBA or Eiswein Riesling, all balance extraordinary density, soaring aromatics and sweetness with equally bright acids. This wine, despite its sugar, is not cloying but rather bursts forth with great energy and the exotic perfume imparted by the variety. Delicious now, this should age well and gain complexity with time. $50 (375ml)
Thanks Morgan!
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Yep, this is going to be expensive.
sounds like a great set of wines Morgan! Love the addition of Bien Nacido Chard!
in general, 2019 is a drink-before-2018 vintage?
Just downloaded the podcast. Will try to give this a listen tonight or tomorrow.
Oh $$$$hit! 
Listening to the podcast from earlier today regarding this release…this will be painful.
Y’all, the Chardonnay sounds incredible. I wasn’t initially planning on doing either of the whites but I’m in for the Chard after hearing the history of this wine.
And in case you need a reminder to stock up on the Cali Syrah…the 2019 is 26% Hudson T East, 23% Griffin’s Lair, 19% Bien Nacido X Block, 28% Bedrock Vineyard, 5% Walker Vine Hill (as Chris said “Baller List”).
Excellent Podcast! As usual this one is going to hurt.
Cali Syrah sounds fantastic. Morgan mentioned that no Griffin’s Lair single vineyard bottling due to the Syrah decline in that vineyard. I completely missed that there was no 2017 or 2018 Griffins Lair either.
Hadn’t noticed that either…I seem to have a 2017 Desire Lines Griffin’s Lair, and the only other 2017 Syrah in CT from there is Spottswoode