Beckmen Vineyards tour and tasting, 25-Oct-2025

The wife and I wanted to entertain a couple visiting from Germany and thought a vineyard tour and tasting would be a great experience (there were 4 others on the tour, as it is limited to 8 people). It was. We had a great tour guide, Tom, who treated us very well with a very informative talk and even allowed us to taste some delicious ripe Grenache and Cabernet grapes that were due to be picked in a few days.

• 2023 Beckmen Vineyards Chardonnay Purisima Mountain Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Ballard Canyon

  Tasting room (was part of the 11a tour that was $60 per person) - $30 tasting fee, five wines. Wine #1 of the flight. $45. 12.9% abv. 250 cases.
  Lovely chardonnay made in a crisper style but not lacking in depth at all. Bright and fresh at the moment, but I think this has the structure to age and improve for a long while. Everyone in the group loved this.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2022 Beckmen Vineyards Grenache Purisima Mountain Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Ballard Canyon

  Tasting room (was part of the 11a tour that was $60 per person) - $30 tasting fee, five wines. Wine #2 of the flight. $70. 15% abv. 400 cases.
  Aged 16 months in 100% neutral puncheons.
  Fresh and clean, with good depth, excellent balance, and a pleasing flavor profile. This could pair with many dishes, both hearty and even a bit delicate. Very nice red, but the rather high price point for a Grenache is not appealing to me.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2022 Beckmen Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Ynez Valley 91 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley

  Tasting room (was part of the 11a tour that was $60 per person) - $30 tasting fee, five wines. Wine #3 of the flight. $42 but on sale this day at $31. 14.6% abv. 2200 cases.
  Aged 19 months in 28% new French oak, 72% neutral oak.
  Clean, pure Cabernet. Made more in a fresh style, showing more Cabernet character than is shown in Napa and Sonoma wines that are often covered up by heavy extraction and oak. Still, this has substantial depth of flavor and is not a wimpy Cab at all. I guess kind of a middle-of-the-road style that suits my palate very nicely. Enjoyable now, but this should continue to improve for years to come. A very good buy at the sale price.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2022 Beckmen Vineyards Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Ballard Canyon

  Tasting room (was part of the 11a tour that was $60 per person) - $30 tasting fee, five wines. Wine #4 of the flight. $42. 14.7% abv. 850 cases.
  Aged 20 months in new 37% French oak, 67% in neutral oak.
  Rich and deep Syrah, with good structure and no rough edges. New world flavor profile, more on the blueberry and plum side than savory and meaty. Still, a very pleasing red that drinks well now and should hold or improve for years to come.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2022 Beckmen Vineyards Syrah OWN Purisima Mountain Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Ballard Canyon

  Tasting room (was part of the 11a tour that was $60 per person) - $30 tasting fee, five wines. Wine #5 of the flight. $68. 15% abv. 370 cases.
  Aged 16 months in 50% new French oak, 50% neutral oak. I think they said that this differs from the "normal" PMV Syrah in that the grapes for this wine come from blocks of vines that are own-rooted, hence the "OWN" designation.
  Tasted after the "normal" 2022 PMV Syrah - it was pretty similar but even richer and deeper. Also, very new world in flavor profile (more blue fruit than savory character). Just a baby now and should evolve nicely for 10+ years if not longer.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Turned out to be a great experience for us, with an informative and interesting tour and some excellent wines.