WOMEN IN WINE, TASTING BLIND, DOING FINE

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WOMEN IN WINE, TASTING BLIND, DOING FINE
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• If you read this blog with any regularity, you
  know Im a big believer in blind tasting (and if
  you read it with irregularity, you should drink
  more wine).  On a recent jaunt to the Arroyo
  Grande region of Californias Central Coast, I
  was invited to take part in a blind tasting
  hosted at Laetitia Winery for the So-Cal Chapter
  of Women in Wine (Retail Sales Division).  Me, 25
  women, 25 wines, I liked the odds.

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• The first blind flight featured sparkling wine. 
  As much as I profess an affinity for Champagne in
  general, the one true Champagne in the flight was
  terrible.  All yeast, very little life, way out
  of whack, it showed why Grower Champagnes (as
  opposed to this purchased fruit, mass-produced
  Large House Champagne) are making serious
  headway, and helped the California sparklers
  stand out as more than just good values. 

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• The NV Gloria Ferrer blanc de noirs was quite a
  surprise, with a fine bead of tiny bubbles, a
  hint of strawberry amid the citrus medley, and
  excellent balance.  Equally good was the NV
  Laetitia brut, quite bright, with a steady bead
  of effervescence and crisp apple flavors with a
  hint of fleur de sel caramel. 

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• Prior to the blind tasting, I also sampled the
  11 Laetitia brut rosé, a stunning American
  sparkler in the class of Soter, Schramsberg and
  Argyle as alternatives to Champagne.  If youre a
  sparkling fan, dont miss it.

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• Next up was California chardonnay.  The 13
  Laetitia stood out as the best balanced and
  showed multiple nuances, even at this young
  stage.  The Laetitia Arroyo Grande property
  boasts some of the highest elevation vineyards in
  the Central Coast, and their proximity to the
  ocean supplies an underlying marine influence
  that is most prominent in their pinot noirs but
  can be found in the shadows of their chardonnay
  as well. 

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• In this case, there is a baseline of slightly
  coddled cream and crushed seashells beneath the
  mix of Gala apple and Valencia orange-fruit
  palate.  The only other real contender was the
  13 Ferrari Carano, with a layered richness and
  beautiful use of oak aging, if perhaps a tad less
  fruit complexity.  While both these wines are
  fairly priced, the Laetitia can usually be found
  for 30 - 40 less. 

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• The other chardonnays in this flight all suffered
  from heavy-handed use of oak and/or poorly
  balanced fruit to acid structure (and, in one
  case, a sickly sweet level of fruit better suited
  for ice cream topping than wine drinking), which
  makes the fact that they cost two to four times
  more than the Laetitia even more disturbing (and
  shine a spotlight on the Laetitia as a chardonnay
  steal).

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• The California pinot noir flight was another
  winner for Laetitia, as the 13 was a mélange of
  sour cherry and portobello mushroom, with hints
  of black plum, marjoram, iron and gardenias. 
  Balanced, delicious, and, yet again, quite
  affordable. 

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• A fairly close second was the 13 La Crema from
  their cool climate Russian River lot. More fruit,
  to be sure, berries and cherries and dashes of Dr
  Pepper and chilled cocoa, but all of it was in
  check with acid and tasted like expressive pinot
  noir (as opposed to another, more expensive,
  offering that couldve passed for a merlot) (Im
  still not sure it wasnt a merlot) (it put the
  no in pinot). 

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• It would be a long stretch to say any of these
  were Burgundian (picture Paul Goldschmidt of
  the D-Backs reaching for a one-hopper from deep
  short type of stretch) (I wanted to say Boog
  Powell, but all I can picture him stretching for
  is seconds at the prime rib buffet), yet the
  consistent growth in quality and popularity of
  pinot noir from California and Oregon speak to
  the beauty of the fruit and the ability of the
  winemakers to take advantage of it.  Is it a
  coincidence the most heralded French Burgundy and
  Bordeaux come from what is frequently now termed
  California vintages?

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• California cabernet sauvignon closed out the
  blind tasting.  Laetitia has a second property
  based in the Santa Barbara Highlands called
  Nadia, which follows the terrific
  quality-to-price ratio model of the Laetitia
  lineup.  The 12 Nadia cab, winner, winner, make
  reservations for dinner, it was fantastic. 

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• Fairly big, bold and chewy, like a bittersweet
  chocolate truffle wrapped around a center of
  crème de cassis and dipped in espresso.  I cant
  say with certainty which is the better vintage
  for California cabernet, 2010 or 2012, but so far
  the success rate is at an all-time high (or at
  least in the conversation with 1974 and 1997). 

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• The triumphant improvement of Central Coast cab
  is really the story, as it wasnt so long ago
  that most every effort from the region was a
  bottle of green bell peppers gone bad.  This
  lineup included one of those, a 12 from Santa
  Ynez with more dill than a case of Clausen
  pickles, as well as a thin 11 from Napa, and a
  stunner from get this Malibu, the 10
  Saddlerock. 

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• I had never experienced this wine (Malibu
  cabernet has a ring to it, like sound government
  or jumbo shrimp, IE these things shouldnt really
  go together), but its on my radar now, and, like
  the Nadia, should be pretty high on yours, too.
   Other Central Coast cabernet to strongly
  consider from 10 and 12 include Justin, Smith
  Hook, Niner, Cass and Mount Eden Vineyards.

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• The Women in Wine were impressive at the whole
  blind tasting thing.  A couple of them guessed
  roughly half the entries down to the producer.  I
  myself managed some vintage and most regional
  responses correctly, but if we were playing strip
  tasting, boy, would my cheeks be red. 

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• The hostesses at Laetitia, Owner Nadia Zilkha and
  National Sales Manager Tabitha Alger, were
  phenomenal.  Nadia is a treasure, from her
  lilting British accent to her exquisite
  hospitality.  Tabitha (spoiler alert she is a
  longtime friend who can hang with the best of
  them, be it laughing, drinking, cursing, or you
  fill-in-the-blank, girl has game) was the life of
  the party even while herding felines (25 women
  drinking wine under one roof, not exactly a
  tranquil oasis) (and if any of that sounds like
  Im complaining, just the opposite, Id join
  Women in Wine at any tasting, anytime, anywhere,
  rosy cheeks be damned).

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• Following the blind tasting, I was able to sample
  a pair of rare Laetitia pinot noir from 2012, the
  whole cluster estate bottling and the La Colline
  single vineyard.  The whole cluster has a meaty,
  gamey, cranberry bog sensibility, with a promise
  of tremendous complexity with age. 

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• The La Colline vineyard was planted in 1981 with
  Martini clone pinot noir, and the combination of
  old vines and earth-forward clone creates a pinot
  noir of lighter color, ethereal delicacy, and an
  umami-esque essence.  Both these wines are
  produced in extremely small quantities, are very
  difficult to locate, and cost significantly more
  than the other wines in the tasting, yet they
  still represent a solid value, given their high
  quality, uniqueness, aging potential and
  scarcity.  Snag a bottle if you can (yes, I
  surely did).

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