| | Went to Beckmen first thing, then Tensley, then over to the Los Olivos Tasting Room & Wine Shop. Great day overall, can't wait to go back!
Beckmen had great staff, beautiful setting and a highly recommended stop - bought the Roussanne.
Wine Shop great too, bought the Tyler Pinot N Block 2009. Tensley Tasting Room Tensley solid, wish it was out in the vineyards, am a member so waiting for fall shipment. - 2010 Tensley Blanc Camp 4 Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
65% Grenache Blanc, 35% Roussanne. Floral nose. Refreshing and crisp, the Grenache Blanc "tames" the Roussanne a bit. Nice tropical fruits, melon. (89 pts.)
- 2010 Lea (Tensley) Chardonnay - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
Oak and pear on the nose. Lemon and apple in the mouth, crisp finish. Nice style chardonnay. Look forward to Jennifer's future wines. (87 pts.)
- 2009 Tensley Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
Still so young. Big rich Syrah. Fruity on the nose and palate - dark fruits of plum, blackberries, etc. Earthiness I like too. Needs time, tannins too powerful. (91 pts.)
- 2010 Tensley Syrah - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
5 different vineyards (Camp 4, Moorman, Thompson, Tierra Alta, Colson Canyon). Bottle 2 months before tasting. 245 cases. Great nose, has all the balance I like in a Syrah, good fruits but not over the top.
Really good at $25, can't beat it I don't think. (90 pts.)
Los Olivos Tasting Room and Wine Shop Great stop, very friendly, small unique wines to taste and discuss. Definitely worth the trip. - 2009 Herman Story Syrah Nuts & Bolts - USA, California
see other notes. dark fruits, some spice and tannins. very tight still. (91 pts.)
- 2007 Ken Brown Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
nice nose - fruity and spice right away. solid complexity and mouth feel. very nice fruit. (90 pts.)
- 2008 McPrice Myers Beautiful Earth - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
80% Syrah. Very nice bottle. Agree with other tasting notes. Nice dark fruits and great pepper and earth. Not huge wine though, in a good way. Could use a few years. (91 pts.)
- 2008 Kenneth-Crawford Pinot Noir Babcock Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
Nice pinot fruit. Smooth with little tannin, can drink now. Not overly complex and a touch sweet but overall pleasing bottle. (89 pts.)
- 2005 Waltzing Bear Pinot Noir Solomon Hills Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley
Nice chance to taste this. 300 cases. Very nice cherry fruit, cola and earthy tones I love in pinot. Agree with other note on the very nice nose. (90 pts.)
- 2010 Luli Pinot Noir - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
150 cases, Gary Pisoni son makes this I believe. Really nice smooth fruit. Seems ready to drink right now. A bit simple. (88 pts.)
- 2009 Talbott Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
Nice nose, good fruit of pear and some vanilla. Not oaky which is great. Not too complex. (88 pts.)
Beckmen Vineyards Beautiful setting to taste the wines. Great friendly staff and solid selection to taste. - 2007 Beckmen Vineyards Roussanne Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
This is a very nice bottle of Roussane. Unctous nose, floral. Pear, honeysuckle. Great texture. Bought a bottle and with some cheese later. Very nice. (91 pts.)
- 2010 Beckmen Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Estate - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Nice simple sauvignon blanc. Crisp, grapefruit. Great in that $15 range. (88 pts.)
- 2007 Beckmen Vineyards Grenache Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Tried next to '08 and like this a touch better. Similar fruits of strawberry, cherry. Floral nose a bit too. Spice. Very nice effort. (92 pts.)
- 2008 Beckmen Vineyards Grenache Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Very nice Grenache, potentially the best coming out of Central California. Touch of Syrah blended in. Nice ripe strawberry and cherry. Pomegranate. Some spice as well. (91 pts.)
- 2008 Beckmen Vineyards Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Very nice Syrah from this area. Nice black fruit. Big but not over the top. Meat and earth flavors and some decent complexity. Needs a bunch of time. (90 pts.)
- 2008 Beckmen Vineyards Syrah Clone #1 Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Darker than the regular Purisima. More meat, chocolate, coffee than the fruit as much. Really like this style, needs so much time through. Really tight and nose not showing great right now. (91 pts.)
- 2008 Beckmen Vineyards Syrah Block Six Purisima Mountain Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
Probably the Purisima Syrah I like the most. Still way too tight to be drinking right now it seemed. Tons of meat, chocolate, dark dark fruits. Great finish. Will last a very long time. (92 pts.)
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