Bordeaux Blends: How & Why

Bordeaux Blends: How & Why

$80.00

Saturday April 8, 2023 | 2:00 pm -3:00 pm | The Sebastian
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Finding Bordeaux in California

What is Bordeaux and why are the wines some of the most coveted wines in the world? Is it the blending of several grape varieties that produce the wines complexity? What does Right Bank and Left Bank really mean? Join Alpha Omega, Aperture Cellars, Canard Vineyard & Halter Ranch as they delve into the history of Bordeaux blends and the five Noble Grapes that made their way to California: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. You will discover how these 5 varietals thrive in the unique soils and microclimates throughout California’s different AVA’s and when blended create some of the most highly acclaimed Bordeaux-style wines.

Located in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles, California, Halter Ranch is set along the westernmost boundaries of Paso Robles, surrounded by the wild, and wide-open Santa Lucia Mountain Range of the Central Coast. Halter Ranch is a 2,700-acre nature estate dedicated to land, art, and legendary terroir-driven wines. The Ranch farms organic wine grapes, olives for olive oil and walnuts. Winemaker Kevin Sass has over 20 years of experience with grape varieties from the property and chooses to use Malbec and Petit Verdot as the complimentary blending components to highlight their Cabernet Sauvignon predominate Proprietary blend, Ancestor.

Canard Vineyard has been creating hand-crafted wines in Napa Valley since 1984. They are well known to enophiles and wine collectors but have managed to stay a bit of a secret as they produce a very limited number of cases each year. All of their single vineyard wines are crafted from dry farmed, estate grown grapes which are skillfully transformed into the finest expression of each varietal and showcase the unique terroir from which they are grown. Their French trained winemaker straddles a fine line between Old World restraint and the vibrancy of the fruit produced from this historic vineyard in Calistoga. In just the last handful of vintages, they have received over fifty ratings of 90 points or above. They are dedicated to creating wines of distinction with an emphasis on quality over quantity.

Aperture Cellars champions a range of expressive Bordeaux-style wines from Sonoma County’s premier cool-climate Bordeaux varietal vineyard sites. The aperture of a camera lens changes the amount of light a photographer has to work with; at Aperture, they are shedding light on what Bordeaux varieties in the cooler pockets of Sonoma County are capable of. Warm, sunny days and brisk nights ensure that every bottle bursts with freshness, no matter how generous the fruit. Winemaker Jesse Katz’s mission for Aperture is to find the top cool-climate spots around California for his beloved Bordeaux varieties to thrive in. For Devil Proof Vineyards, it’s all about dry-farmed Malbec—the variety for which Jesse earned the highest-ever scores from Wine Spectator, Robert Parker, Jr. of The Wine Advocate, and Wine Enthusiast.
Alpha Omega farms prized grapes from its own vineyards and from historic vineyards throughout Napa Valley such as Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard in Oakville, Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard and Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard in St. Helena, Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard and Thomas Vineyard in Rutherford, Sunshine Valley Vineyard in Oak Knoll District, Toyon Vineyard in Carneros and Stagecoach Vineyard in the Atlas Peak AVA.

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