GRENACHE

2021 Santa Barbara Highlands A Tribute to Grace

IN STOCK
Grapes Grenache
Colour Red
Origin USA, California
District Santa Barbara Highlands
ABV 14.5%

Native-yeast ferment with foot-treading and a portion of whole-cluster fermentation. Aged in a mix of new and old French barriques and larger puncheons.
A surprising light orange and ruby colour. Aromas of herbs, dried flowers and cooked strawberries. Herbal and floral flavours are intense and unusual, the fruit taking a back seat to the aromatic garden in the glass. Excellent acidity and athletic, muscular tannins. A very unusual and fairly compelling wine that leans quite savoury in quality. The acidity suggests ageing potential, but I'm not sure what will happen with this wine over time.
Drinking range: 2023 - 2027 Rating: 17 Alder Yarrow - www.JancisRobinson.com (Aug 2023)

*Case price discount: Mix any 12 bottles of wine (or 9 litre equivalent) or 6 bottles of Champagne, Spirits, Sweet Wine or Fortified (4.5 litres) to get the discounted 'case price' for each bottle.

A Tribute to Grace

'A Tribute to Grace' is winemaker Angela Osborne's project to craft wines which focus on the aromatic and silky qualities of Grenache. The 'Grace' in the name is not only a reference to her beloved grandmother but is a mantra for Angela’s life and approach to winemaking. Grace is also what Angela finds in her treasured Grenache, particularly in the wine that inspires her: 1999 Château Rayas.

A native of Auckland, New Zealand, Angela fell in love with the storytelling of wine when working in wine retail while also studying film-making. In the six years Angela worked in retail, she never came across a single-varietal bottling of Grenache, however, after a three-month internship in 2002 at Simi winery in Sonoma County, California, she finally had her epiphany moment after tasting a Dry Creek Valley Grenache.

Returning home, Angela knew that she had to produce her own expression of this intriguing variety but wouldn’t be able to do so in New Zealand’s cooler, unsuitable climate. She considered several vineyard locations in Europe and Southern Australia, but after a brief stint in London, Angela returned to California in 2006, settling in Santa Barbara.

Santa Barbara is probably best-known for producing Pinot and Chardonnay, but is also capable of producing world class expressions of Rhône varietals, which have been cultivated in California for over 100 years.

The 'Santa Barbara Highlands' vineyard sits at 3500 feet elevation in the Sierra Madre mountains on a layer of decomposed granite and clay loam. Here, the 17-year-old “Tablas A” clone produces a vibrant, well-balanced expression of Grenache, full of rhubarb, red berries, and baking spices.

The 'Shake Ridge' vineyard in the Sierra Foothills AVA is at 1700 feet elevation on a bed of rose quartz. The combination of soil profile and diurnal temperature shift (around 10°C) results in a unique expression of Angela’s favourite clone (362), which is delicate, pure, and haunting.

Site selection is the key, and dictates the differences of each wine. Angela employs restraint in the cellar, working with native yeasts and to biodynamic principals (including the lunar calendar). The wines are elegant, nuanced and complex, and in shape more like Pinot Noir than the boisterous styles of the southern Rhône.

California Dreamin' Mixed Case

Transport yourself to the Golden State with this case. From our friends at Land of Saints/A Tribute to Grace, Darling Wines and m2 Wines, see what this extraordinary land has to offer.

The Californian sunshine mixed six

California is an exciting melting-pot to explore. Our quartet of talented winemakers in California, all came to winemaking here later in life – drawn to the opportunity that the state offered to fulfil their vinous dreams.
Between them they are producing wines that paints a picture of the great diversity that California has to offer – from bold Zinfandel, through fine-boned Grenache, aromatic Syrah and a Chardonnay imbued with some Californian sunshine.
We’ve put together a mixed six along these lines as well – a snapshot of what the Golden State can do – across a variety of terroir, grape varieties.

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