Santa Lucia Highlands, pinot noir heaven
The Santa Lucia Highlands is a beautiful AVA. The term AVA (American Viticultural Area) refers to the grape’s place of origin. A vineyard’s “terior” is a combination of geography, climate, soil types and viticulture practices. These factors make the wine grapes from that particular location unique.
The heavenly beauty of the Santa Lucia Highlands can be seen by driving south of Salinas on Highway 101. Look to your right when you reach the town of Chualar. You will have seen the entire beauty of the Santa Lucia Highlands (SLH) when you reach a few miles past Soledad. You can exit on Romie Road to cross over the Salinas River. Turn on River Road and visit the wineries that have tasting rooms. Take a picnic, the view of the Salinas Valley is amazing. Stay on River Road to Salinas to finish the SLH AVA loop.
The SLH AVA is 18 miles long and has widths of between 1-2 miles It was established in 1991. Vineyard elevations run between 50 to 1,650 feet with granite-based alluvial deposits, gravely and sandy loam soils. The coastal influence of fog and strong daily winds plus the low annual rainfall (10-14 inches) extends the growing season. This long hang time produces grapes with fully developed flavors. It is the perfect location for California’s best pinot noir and Chardonnay.
I recently participated in a Zoom tasting of six Santa Lucia Highlands wines. They were the 2019 Lucia Soberanes Vineyard Chardonnay, the 2018 Miner Family Winery Gary’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, the McIntyre Familly Wines 2017 Estate Pinot Noir, Wrath’s 2018 Boekenoogen Vineyards Pinot Noir, Hahn’s 2019 SLH Pinot Noir and the 2019 Rosella’s Vineyard Pinot Noir by Walt. I could not pick out a favorite. Yes, they were all different, all well-balanced and all just crazy good. It’s a testament to the generations of family farming in the SLH. Great wines are made in the vineyard and the growers in the Santa Lucia Highlands have certainly proven that point. Go to santaluciahighlands.com for more information.
What’s on our table
The 2018 Louis Jadot Rose was the runner-up in my most recent 2018 rose tasting. Sale priced at $4.98 makes it a Grocery Outlet steal. The 2019 Hahn Winery Pinot Noir lists for $15 but is sale priced under $12 in local markets. It won the Best of Class Award in the 2021 S.F. Chronicle Wine Competition. It’s readily available and definitely a deal. The SLH 2019 pinot noir is made by Hahn Winery. They source grapes from their four vineyards in the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. The SRP is $30 but a six-pack purchase brings the price down into the $22 range. Is that just another deal or a mini splurge? You decide. Cheers!
Questions? Comments? Find me on Facebook or at rgwinton@yahoo.com.