Ep 156 - Santa Barbara County

Court of Wine

This week we are talking about Santa Barbara County and it’s wines. We touched on this area in a couple of past episodes, specifically episode 50 on Central Coast Pinot Noir and episode 53 that featured our interview Clarissa Nagy of Nagy wines.

Wine Recommendations

Mer Soleil Reserve Chardonnay 2014 - priced around $28

• Deep golden color with with aromas of stonefruit, melon, ripe bananas and vanilla cream
• This wine is dry, full bodied with medium acidity and flavors similar to aromas - tropical and stonefruits and that creamy vanilla flavor
• Very cream, soft texture and the oak flavor is there put not strong which we appreciated - it’s just the right amount
• Also, you can tell this Chardonnay comes from the cooler climate that other parts of California because it has that acidity to balance out the fuller body and texture of the wine.
• Priced around $ 28
• You can purchase this wine at Total Wine

Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 - priced around $25.

• This wine was given to us as a sample
• Aromas of dark fruits - blackberry, black cherry and black plum as well as some green pepper notes
• It’s dry with medium acidity and medium silky, smooth tannins with flavors of dark fruits, vanilla and a hint of a vegetal notes
• Love the tannins in this wine - provides a great sensory experience
• You can also tell this wine is from a cooler part of california but the fruit aromas and flavors are ripe but don’t have a cooked or jammy quality to them.
• You can purchase this wine from Mucas & Lewellen's website

Sources

• Santa Barbara Vintners
• Book: American Wine
• Wine Searcher
• GuildSomm
• Los Olivos AVA