Aimée Rosé *NEW RELEASE*

Named for a remarkable woman and made with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, this wine is beautiful to behold in sunlight, delicious to taste in any light, and priced so that any passionate person can buy a case.

Pinot Noir, Santa Cruz Mountains , Dettamanti Vineyard, 2007 *NEW RELEASE*

The 2004 Pinot from this vineyard scored Gold in the Santa Cruz Mountains competition. This one is darker, more intense, yet beautifully balanced. Candidly, it's still very young. You too, eh! By the time people figure it out, it will be gone. Act now. Oh…and don't pay ridiculous dollars for Ego Noir that's still trying to draft on Sideways.

Primitivo 2007, Monterey County *NEW RELEASE*

Primitivo, hands down, is our most successful wine, but not because of its history of gold medals or its “subtle nuances.” It just parks its old truck in your front yard, brings out a guitar, fires up the grill, and soon enough, your wife and children are out there dancing. Might as well join them, because this is a flavor festival that's going to last all night. Ditch the necktie.

Coyote Cuvée 2006, Wiley Ranch, Arroyo Seco

We bottled the second edition of the Coyote Cuvée in May, 2008, after 19 months in the cellar in mixed Nevers and American oak. The blend is a little softer than the 2004, which by the way is really spreading its wings now. It’s 29% each Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and 14% each of Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petite Verdot…representing all 5 of the traditional Bordeaux blending varietals. I offers a really welcoming, warm fruitiness of plum and cassis, with hints of cedar and vanilla. I think you’re going to love this one, and it will be ready for tasting in the fall…and for lots of happy years beyond.

Newt South Wells 2006, Monterey County

I first tasted a bright, brash, unapologetically fruity Cabernet and Shiraz blend from Australia about 15 years ago. Of course, my lifelong personal challenges with authority have led me to admire the Aussies’ collective willingness to rattle the traditional chains that bind European conventions and tinker with blends that are iconoclastically, ravishly, Under-Handed. When Sandie and I visited Western Australia in 2006 and tasted extensively, that distant respect grew into an intensely personal conviction. I also came to believe that some of the uniquely spicy character of the Aussie blends may owe partly to the content of Cabernet Franc in many of the really good ones.

I decided to make an Aussie-inspired blend that Fall, but what to call it? I wanted to honor the Aussie’s initiative as well as their inimitable mischief, and I also wanted to mention Salamandre’s partner and vice president of unbridled enthusiasm, Dave South. While drinking Verdelho in Sydney on our last night, the name arose like a dancer from the glass. We put together 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Shiraz, 18% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Primitivo, all from Monterey County. It’s inky, bold, and bulging with fruit…absolutely what I was hoping for. Until 2010, it’s going to come across young, and I’d encourage you to decant it an hour before serving.

Chardonnay 2007, Arroyo Seco

The approaching 2008 harvest will mark the 30th consecutive harvest for me in this now venerable vineyard in Monterey County…and my 30th Chardonnay from the very same vines. My home winemaker’s 1979 Arroyo Seco Chardonnay led to the unsolicited compliments of several commercial winemakers…. These seductive comments started the mental metamorphosis (what was I thinking?) and eventually led to Salamandre’s emergence from the carefree bog of amateurism onto the perilous pavement of the cold cruel world in 1985. For some reason, those Arroyo Seco vines have grown thick, wrinkled, and crooked over that elapsed time, which makes me wonder how the winemaker has avoided going through any such developments. OK, well, maybe a few things have changed. Suffice to say that we will increasingly exploit the euphemism “maturity” as a quality attribute.

Meanwhile, the 2007 Arroyo Seco Chardonnay is going to turn some heads of both young and old wine lovers. It’s full of the tropical fruit and melon character that typifies these vines, with the same firm acidity that has made this a consistent winner over 3 decades. A tasteful background contribution of French oak will, I believe, make anybody who says they “don’t like Chardonnay” recant their heresy.

Chardonnay 2007, Dettamanti Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains

We sold out of Chardonnay in the summer, but reinforcements are here!  This vineyard on the summit creates a wine with a somewhat leaner, more angular style that the Arroyo Seco, with delicate fruit and a balanced vanilla contribution from the oak.  The 2006 was cherished as a food-friendly wine, and I think the 2007 will please the chefs…and the diners alike.

Pinot Blanc 2007 Arroyo Seco

In 2005, I had planned to make Viognier, but the fruit was a bit disappointing that year.  However, in the adjacent row in Arroyo Seco's UC Davis certified Woodstock nursery, I saw a bounty of fully ripe and marvelously fruity Pinot Blanc.  I figured I had an empty truck, a full day, and an intrigue for adventure, and, yes, we made Pinot Blanc.  It sold out within months after release…probably my most popular white wine ever.  Well, it's back!    We let the 2007 hang until the trademark white peach flavors just jumped out of the grapes, barrel fermented it like Chardonnay although with older, neutral oak barrels, and tried to keep out of its way.  Beyond the fruity aromas, it has a soft mouth feel, yet plenty of natural acidity to stay bright for years.   I think you're just going to love this wine—try it with something rich like Coquilles St. Jacques or mussel soup. 

Viognier 2007, Late Harvest, Arroyo Seco

OK, buckle up.  I need to be honest—while Viognier has achieved a darling status in the marketplace, I really haven't tasted many California Viogniers that would stand out in a blind tasting of well made Chenin Blancs.  I think I know why so many are disappointingly thin, and why the exalted “violets” are so hard to find.  The Viognier grapes at Arroyo Seco at 24 Brix, normally nudging the upper limits of white grape harvest targets, still haven't reached mature concentration of flavors.  They're just not ready.  Pick the grapes then, and you would have a wine pushing 14% alcohol, but with rather thin flavors which we'd need to flatter by saying “delicate.”  Accordingly, we let these grapes hang…and hang…and hang.  Up around 28 Brix, some pretty remarkable things were happening with fruit development, still with surprisingly good acid, but then there's a big problem.  That sugar level is a never-never land for harvesting, as the juice will ferment to dryness, creating an really flavorful wine…with 16% alcohol…a wine in search of a niche.    So we let them hang some more…waiting until the natural sweetness reached such a high level that the fermentation would surrender with natural sugar remaining.  The 2007 late fall weather was steady, with an early rain followed by warm breezy conditions for weeks.  That was a stroke, not really of genius, but of gratitude.   

We finally harvested the week before Thanksgiving.  The grapes were shriveled but sound, with the prized Botrytis mold enveloping many of the clusters.  The pressing took 2 full days, as the grapes yielded their syrupy juice begrudgingly, and I can see why…it was pure honeysuckle with a nuance of pears and fairies.   The fermentation eventually settled with 9% residual sugar, and it's just a sensual treat.  I debated whether to enter it in the Santa Cruz Mountains competition just 2 weeks after bottling, but like the crazy scientist said in Back to the Future , I thought:  “Oh, what the hell.”  It missed a gold by a slender wisp (89 points)…and just wait ‘til Fall. 

Pinot Blanc 2007 Arroyo Seco

In 2005, I had planned to make Viognier, but the fruit was a bit disappointing that year.  However, in the adjacent row in Arroyo Seco's UC Davis certified Woodstock nursery, I saw a bounty of fully ripe and marvelously fruity Pinot Blanc.  I figured I had an empty truck, a full day, and an intrigue for adventure, and, yes, we made Pinot Blanc.  It sold out within months after release…probably my most popular white wine ever.  Well, it's back!    We let the 2007 hang until the trademark white peach flavors just jumped out of the grapes, barrel fermented it like Chardonnay although with older, neutral oak barrels, and tried to keep out of its way.  Beyond the fruity aromas, it has a soft mouth feel, yet plenty of natural acidity to stay bright for years.   I think you're just going to love this wine—try it with something rich like Coquilles St. Jacques or mussel soup. 

Pinot Noir, Santa Cruz Mountains , Meadowridge 2006

The Meadowridge vines push deeper into the soils of Corralitos every year, and we expect greater complexity from these Dijon clones with each successive vintage.  This wine seemed so drinkable in the early months after bottling that I had a few butterflies, but happily, it just keeps gaining layers of interesting fruit—cherry, to be sure, but also pomegranate, maybe even strawberry, plus some of the earthiness that begs you to go find some Chanterelles.  Golly, it is hard to describe Pinot with the aromas of other fruits and berries when the real descriptor is: “It tastes like really good Pinot.”  In fact, I use this wine in tastings to illustrate the varietal to people who are learning to discriminate varietals.   Pinot usually goes through an awkward adolescence in the bottle, but this precocious junior is running cross country, writing poetry, and applying for early admission.   Silver medal in the 2008 Santa Cruz Mountains competition. 

Primitivo 2004 Ultra Late Harvest

A few warm days spiked the harvest sugar well beyond what normal yeast can handle...over 35%. It quit with 14% residual sugar...more than most ports, with a great concentration of ripe fruit flavors. Yes, of course, this harmonizes with dark chocolate, but try it with vanilla ice cream or Bosc pears or, perhaps best of all, an imaginative companion. This wine is precious and scarce—I've never made anything like it before and may never have the chance again.