Santa Barbara County, CA
Tasted Sunday, July 6, 2008 by isaacjamesbaker with 866 views
I've had a few of these before and have always thought that they were great values. I enjoyed pretty much every wine and several really blew me away.
This winery isn't worth visiting. The place is quaint and right across the street from Santa Barbara Winery in the town of Santa Barbara. Their wines are horrible though. I did buy my wife a very nice piece of locally-made jewelry though, so I guess the stop wasn't a total loss.
Foley Estates is in a gorgeous location just west of Buellton. It was such a beautiful drive through cliffs, rolling hills and vines to get there. The fog had just started to roll back behing the hills and the sun came out to warm us and the grapes up as we arrived. The tasting room is beautiful and bright and the staff are knowlegeable and helpful. It's a great place to visit and have a picnic. The wines, last but not least, were quite impressive.
I loved visiting Melville. They gave me the tasting for free and gave generous pours. The staff was really friendly and gave me a tour of the barrel room, which was gorgeous, and of their private wine library. The grounds are beautiful and they let us walk through the vineyards, randomly snapping pictures and taking in the warm sun. The tasting room is all wood and it has a really down-to-earth feel, while at the same time an aura of prestige and elegance. The wines, speaking generally, were great. It was really interesting to taste so many of their great pinot noirs side by side. I went back and tasted some next to eachother, and some several times, and had a great time discussing the wines with the tasting room associates. What a great experience.
We stopped by Babcock right after Melville. (After all, they share the same driveway!) The winery is located up a hill and provides spectacular views of the surrounding vineyards and hills. I got to taste some great wines. Some were more to my liking than others, but every wine I sipped was unique and had a great personality. When discussing the wines with the tasting room staff and learning how they were made, you really get an understand of how each wine is a unique expression of place and the winemaker's vision. I had a great time and highly recommend this winery. It was the highlight of the trip.
We had a great time at the Hitching Post in Buellton after tasting all day. We were starving, and had been drinking all day, so we passed on doing a flight of their own wines and just each got a glass to go with our meal. The food was excellent. We got shrimp cocktails and corn chowder to start and for entrees I got grilled quail with sweet mashed potatoes and my wife got the ostrich steak with wild rice. Wow. Great food and the wines, atmosphere, staff and entire experience were great too.
2007 Santa Barbara Winery Pinot Gris Thompson Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
tasted at the winery. 20% of this lovely pinot gris sees time in oak barrels. lemon yellow colored with lemons and green pear on the nose. it's crisp on the palate, but the small amount of oak treatment gives it a bit of weight on the palate. could be a great aperetif or something to serve with rice and chicken dishes. very pleasant for the suggested $16.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2006 Santa Barbara Winery Chardonnay
USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
tasted at the winery. this is a great middle-of-the-road chardonnay.58% barrel fermented and 58$ maloactic fermentation. it's golden colored with some nice hazelnut on the nose. medium acid with crunchy golden apple flavors, but the oak and malo add just the right amount of creamy, buttery mouthfeel and some golden pineapple flavors. great qpr wine at $14. from the lafond, hill top ranch, byron, schied, loma verde, vino ranch vineyards. 13.7% alcohol. 22,000 cases made.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2007 Santa Barbara Winery Pinot Noir Central Coast
USA, California, Central Coast
tasted at the winery. 100% from the scheid vineyard in monterey. i wasn't very impressed with this actually. it has a really nice nose of cherry reduction sauce but the tannins are weak, the acid is lower and the cherry flavors just aren't as powerful or complex as i'd like. 13.7% alcohol. 3,950 cases produced.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2006 Santa Barbara Winery Chardonnay Reserve
USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
tasted at the winery. this is 100% barrel fermented and 100% maloactic fermentation from the lafond, sanford, benedict and hill top vineyards. this is dark gold with a rich nose of vanilla and fresh oatmeal toast. full-bodied and bold, with lots of vanilla and hazelnut on the palate, but it's well-balanced by medium acidity. the finish has a dash of lime that is really nice. 14.7% alcohol. 1,321 cases made.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2005 Santa Barbara Winery Sangiovese Stolpman Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
tasted at the winery. one of the best cal-itals i've had in a very, very long time. bright red color in the glass with high viscosity. the nose is so fresh and lively, showing candied cherries, kirsch, maraschino cherries and rasberry liquer. really unique nose. full-bodied, medium tannins and acid, very well-balanced. rasberries, toast, rose petals and tobacco flavors are smoothly integrated and there is a medium finish. a great deal at $24. the 14.8% alcohol is not a bother. 536 cases made.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2005 Santa Barbara Winery Grenache Lafond Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
tasted at the winery. dark ruby colored and viscous in the glass. this has a big nose of pepper, lamb hide and red cherries. very rhone. on the palate, this is a really big wine. there is serious fruit as well, with lots of cherries and rasberries, balanced out with medium tannins and acid, and solid pepper, leather and licorice flavors. a really complex, big grenache. there is a bit of heat (15.7% alc), but i loved this, especially for $22.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2005 Santa Barbara Winery Petite Sirah Thompson Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
tasted at the winery. this is inky, almost opaque purple and hugely viscous. just the way a ps should be! dense blackberries, coffee, charcoal and jam on the nose, which is just great. lots of tannins. full-bodied and dense with coffee, boysenberry jam and chocolate flavors that linger on a medium+ finish. a really yummy wine. 100% petite sirah. spent 18 months in barrel and is 14.9% alcohol.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2004 Santa Barbara Winery Lagrein Joughin Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
tasted at the winery. this rare red variety from alto adige is almost pitch in the glass. wow. it's viscous too. on the nose this has extracted blackberries galore. there's also a really intriguing salami aroma that is very evident. i love it. strong tannins, full-bodied and thick on the palate, but this isn't just a kick in the teeth kind of wine. it has really complex flavors of plumb rind, toast, coffee and pomegranate as well. there's a hint of animal hide and goat cheese as well and a pleasant, just slightly bitter, bite on the finish. 14% alcohol, which isn't a problem at all as the wine is so huge. aged in 25% new barrels and 92 cases made. picked up a bottle for $30 and plan on cellaring it, as it's a really, really big boy right now. would be great with some very strong cheeses and whole wheat crackers.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue