This is a first in a two-part series because, well, I just have that many (amazing) Tablas Creek wines to try.
For those of you unfamiliar with the Tablas Creek story, here’s a brief synopsis (Jason, feel free to step in and edit me if I got any of this wrong)…
If you haven’t read my notes about Crystal Basin Cellars Mourvèdre, definitely take a look. My understanding of California’s Sierra Foothills as a cool-climate wine terroir was proven right by that light, yet rustic single-varietal expression. So I was excited to open the winery’s single-varietal Grenache—a grape that I have a love-hate relationship with. I love it when I can taste the eccentricity of fruit flavors innate in this variety, the racy red spices that can linger in the back palate, and the assertive acidity that binds it all together. I hate when it turns into a over-ripe fruit bomb, worthy of spreading on my toast with peanut butter.
I’ll give you one good guess which side of the Grenache spectrum Crystal Basin Cellars falls into…
I have no information on this wine, as it was received as a gift, not as a sample for review. But I will tell you this, it’s a pretty easy drinker and I recommend pairing it with something with a bit of spice (spiceful not spicy) and a bit of sauce, as I did. Grenache can be hit or miss. This is a definite hit, but by no means a homerun.
I do love a good Grenache. That is a fact. The key word is good. This variety is so expressive of it’s terroir, but also very sensitive to the winemaking process. Some of the best Grenache I’ve had are from winemakers with a kind of “hippie” attitude, if you will, when it comes to their Rhone-style winemaking approach: Express the terroir, man.
Tasting this Grenache “blind” — as in no tech sheet or vineyard or winemaking information prior to tasting — I felt that this particular wine lacked site specificity, that the overall palate was more about the winemaking than the wine grape. That being said, I never feature wines that I don’t think are worth writing about. I do think that the flavor profile and palate will be suitable to some and that it can have a fit given the proper pairing.
I’ve followed winemaker Janu Goelz for quite some time—admittedly mostly on social media. What I immediately recognized was a young woman passionate about building her brand and business. Located on the outskirts of San Jose in Gilroy, California, Alara Cellars is one of a handful of boutique wineries in the Santa Clara Valley. Most folks forget about this piece of California wine country, and I love how she embraces it, pouring her wines at both local Silicon Valley hangouts and, now, at regional shows and competitions.
Oh how her brand has grown into such a success.
After interviewing her for a feature in our magazine, I finally got to meet her a few weeks ago at my company’s annual Bottle Bash party during the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium. She is just as friendly and delightful as her wines suggest. So I feel privileged to review one of her wines here on my humble little website.
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