Steve,
Please reach out directly and let me know when you are planning on being here. More than happy to help any way that I can . . .
Cheers!
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As a side note, if you have time for dinner in Santa Barbara, I highly recommend Barbareno. Exciting meal, fun atmosphere, great service, solid wine list.
Is that Vinnie’s place? He got out of Brooklyn?
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Naw, he moved to Spain to make Vino Albarino.
Always found Sea Smoke a bit over the top for Pinot. Have not tasted their wines in a decade however.
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Sanford have not had them in a while but thanks for the refresh.
I like domaine de la cote. We are doing a dinner based on it in NYC if anyone here wants to come by the afterparty. We will probably have left over DDLC for people to try. Let me know if you want to be waitlisted or can join us for the afterparty.
While I have never been to the winery, I would second Whitcraft, a very underrated pinot and definitely on the Burgundian side of the spectrum. ABC is also very good.
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Hi Tom,
I agree on both recs. Drake Whitcraft has been making some fine wines across the board for many years now after taking over for his father Chris in 2008 who passed in 2014.
Jim Clendenen {ABC} styled his wines with Burgundy in mind and in his heart, but admitted CA sourced fruit has its own terrior and it would always be distinguished. Jim`s wine were built to age gracefully and over time and many of his wines from the 1980s ands 1990s are drinking beautifully now.
Tyler is the first one to come to mind. The most Burgundy-inspired producer in that area, that I know of, at least now that Arcadian (where Tyler’s winemaker, Justin Willett, was assistant winemaker early in his career).
I visited once, and while it’s not at all a fancy experience (it was just in the facility and storage place), they shared a lot of great wines and information.
[Their tasting experience could have changed in the years since I was there last.]
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Way back in 1984, I was visiting Saintsbury in southern Napa Valley. One of the people there who was from Burgundy told us that the place in California that had the closest soil to Burgundy was the Santa Cruz Mountains.
For the region you are interested in, ABC is a good recommendation.
A close friend was really into Sea Smoke a few years ago and I’ve had a few really great bottles but my wife really doesn’t enjoy it - and her palate is better than mine. I enjoyed it, but we’re talking mid 2010’s.
Have to say I loved a bottle of Sanford I had this year in Feb. It was a 2013 Visat al Rio that was really exceptional.
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Sea Smoke has fans, but they don’t make wine with a Burgundy style as the goal. Haven’t had Sanford since Richard Sanford was forced out. They didn’t used to be Burgundian, but different winemaker.
-Al
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Go to Stolpman and get a little taste of everything.
Honestly, just try everything. Santa Barbara is the most underrated wine region in California.
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If you want a wine to be Burgundian, you should buy Burgundy. If you believe in terroir, California Pinot should tasted like California Pinot, not Burgundy.
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I know a lot of California Pinot winemakers, essentially all of them agree with that statement (which is a good thing).
-Al
Yeah, I know- I just wanted to try out things more on the Burg-influenced end of the old world style/terroir spectrum than say, the jam end of the spectrum (talkin’ to YOU, Brewer-Clifton with your 14.5% alcohol…)
Then again, I tapped a 2020 Mugnier NSG Marechale last night that also tipped the scales at 14.5% alcohol- tasted like a high-octane raisin - bleck. 
So low ABV = ‘Burgundian’ as it pertains to Pinot? And 14.5 is considered really high ABV for Pinot? Interesting….
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Well, with climate change it does seem like we are seeing more ripe, “solar” vintages in Burgundy, with ABVs creeping up. Theres a recent thread about a Mugnier Marechale vertical we did here in ATL where I tried to document label ABVs from 2004-2019. The numbers definitely did go up, especially in the last 5+ years. I know label ABV is not 100% precise, but still it is notable.
I’m not an expert or ITB, but for my palate it seems like once Pinot crosses the 14% alcohol threshold it can become dominated by big fruit (and hey, I like me some fruit). Other elements start to be drowned out/lost. Often, these big wines seem (to me) to be lower in balancing acid and tannic grip, two things that contribute to balance, longevity and positive development over time. There are exceptions for sure (hello Tawse 20 Etelois, Chanin and, and…) and just because alcohols are low doesn’t make it better. But I think most of us are looking for that ineffable balance of fruit, tannin, acid and hopefully, a sense of place.
Theres a quote I like from Christopher Howell of Cain winery
“Pinot is a sensitive and transparent variety that reveals the choices being made.”
Larry, as a winemaker yourself, I’d be interested to hear you point of view.
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Steve,
Great post - and an interesting one to discuss. ‘Transparency’ is something that seems to get lost oftentimes based on the decisions of the winemaker. To me, picking decisions are huge as are oak decisions - these 2 things tend to ‘get in the way’ of transparency more often than not.
I agree the Pinot can be quite transparent - just as Grenache can be. And I do believe that you can make a compelling, balanced pinot that is 14.5% or even a bit higher. That said, as you pointed out, a different ‘fruit profile’ will arise as the ripeness goes up for sure, and this may lead to something you are not looking for.
‘Balance’ is such a subjective term that it will be difficult to ‘please’ everyone - and my last post had more to do with folks drawing a line in the sand and stating that anything different than that will not be what they are looking for, which I find ‘problematic’ with how many exceptions to every rule that there is.
I am far from a pinot expert - I have only made pinot for my label for 3 vintages now with only my 2020s in bottle - but from what I’ve created, I look at pinot in the same way I do Grenache - stem inclusion, all older oak, no racking until bottling. And I’ve been pleased with the results.
Not sure I answered your question but I tried . . .
Cheers
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