Santa Cruz mountains: terroir wanted

[tanabutler]

So my ex-husband's wonderful daddy is coming to town in January. He has traveled the entire world (including the South Pole), and he loves nothing more than a fabulous meal, which he can afford in abundance.

I told them about Manresa, and the papa is going to take my ex and his wife for the chef's tasting. I told my ex that he could make an excellent impression on his daddy if he brings a bottle or two of really good wine. He likes this idea: his father won't let him pick up the tab, but it will make him (the son) look like a grown-up.

I was thinking that a couple of bottles from the Santa Cruz mountains would be appropriate, since much of Manresa's menu is from the region. Assuming they would enjoy red wine with their meal (they're just that way), does anyone have any good suggestions for a bottle (or two) in the $50 range? Something distinct, perhaps unusual? Ridge is always the obvious choice, but I wanted to see what others thought.

I know this is something I could ask the restaurant directly, but figured the collective knowledge here would have a chance to flex its muscles.

This map might help.

Thanks!

[melkor]

I'd look outside California for wine to match with the food at Manresa. Riesling from Alsace, White Burgundy, Champagne (obviously), something from the Rhone.

If he's bringing two bottles, I'd go with a rose Champagne (Paul Bara brut Rose is on sale at Kermit Lynch at the moment for 20% off - ~$40 by the bottle or $34 if you get a case). Keep an eye on what Premier Cru is selling and grab whatever looks good for a red.

[ludja]

David Bruce-- Pinot Noir or Petit Syrah could be a good choice in addition to Ridge. Their wines, especially those from the Santa Cruz Mtns applelation, are distinctive and very good. Also, in the price range you are looking for ($40-$60)

Edited December 6, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Rebel Rose]

California has 847 brick-and-mortar wineries. Each winery has a low average of 10 annual selections. That's at least 8,470 wines produced per year.

Winegrapes are grown in 45 of California's 58 counties. Wine is California's most valuable finished agricultural product.

California's 847 commercial wineries are predominantly family owned and operated businesses, which are active in local community affairs. Charitable contributions from wineries and grape growers were $62 million in 1998 (the last available figures.)

Source: The Wine Institute

Out of a realistic 10,000 wines produced here annually, I'd look within California to find wines to serve.

(And personally, I'm nuts for the Old Wave Zin, having drunk my way through three vintages. When I find a bottle that the winemaker's kids have colored in with colored pencils, that's really special. It's $18 retail, $34 to $42 in local restaurants, assuming you can find it. It won't go with Manresa's food, though. Too bad, more for me.)

[winesonoma]

California has 847 brick-and-mortar wineries.  Each winery has a low average of 10 annual selections.  That's at least 8,470 wines produced per year.

Winegrapes are grown in 45 of California's 58 counties.  Wine is California's most valuable finished agricultural product.

California's 847 commercial wineries are predominantly family owned and operated businesses, which are active in local community affairs.  Charitable contributions from wineries and grape growers were $62 million in 1998 (the last available figures.)

Source:  The Wine Institute

Out of a realistic 10,000 wines produced here annually, I'd look within California to find wines to serve.

(And personally, I'm nuts for the Old Wave Zin, having drunk my way through three vintages.  When I find a bottle that the winemaker's kids have colored in with colored pencils, that's really special.  It's $18 retail, $34 to $42 in local restaurants, assuming you can find it.  It won't go with Manresa's food, though.  Too bad, more for me.)

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I doubt the the children still hand color the labels. One of my favorites also. http://www.randomridge.com/contents.html

[melkor]

It’s been my experience that wines from CA tend to have more fruit, more alcohol, and less acid and minerality than their non-CA counterparts. Because I find they often compete with, rather than complement, the flavors in the food, I prefer to drink CA wines by themselves. On a few occasions we’ve had both at home and at restaurants good success pairing one California wine with one dish, I’ve never had a truly excellent food and wine pairing across multiple dishes when the wine is from CA. White Rhones, on the other hand, regularly (and quite successfully) appear across multiple courses as part of the wine pairing at the French Laundry and other restaurants. That being said, our wine cellar is 35% CA, and I’ve enjoyed some Pinots and Rhone-style wines from CA with food. But since the red-wine-friendly courses at Manresa make up a small portion of the menu (or at least have both times I’ve eaten there), and given that the dinner in question is a festive meal, I think a sparkler would be appropriate.

Here's the menu from the meal we had at Manresa last night:

1] carrot-orange cocktail w/hibiscus

2] parmesan churros

3] fennel & orange salad

4] sayori w/shiso (deep fried)

5] bluefin tuna belly, meyer lemon (served raw)

6] chestnut croquettes (dominated by truffles)

7] prime beef tartare

8] potato leek soup w/egg & cheese

9] foie custard and twice cooked foie & quince on toast crisp

10] fluke & caviar

11] mackerel & steelhead roe

12] saltcod & potatoes

13] more foie gras

14] roast squab w/yams & coconut milk

15] lamb shoulder & garlic puree

16] wagyu beef, spinach, and sauce bordelaise

17] pineapple soup w/lemongrass

18] meyer lemon custard w/ginger -- buttermilk panna cotta w/huckleberries

19] banana cake & pecan icecream

20] molasses milkshake

21] chocolate and pear dessert (one of the low points of the meal)

22] mint sorbet and chocolate gelee

So if it's me, and I am bringing two wines, I'd bring either Billecart Salmon Brut Rose or Paul Bara Brut Rose for 1-8 & 10-12 and a 94 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Heimbourg VT for 9, 13, & 17-19 and buy a glass of Syrah or Grenache for courses 14, 15, and 16.

[CtznCane]

Funny but it seems the question was what wines from the region to bring, not the opinion that California wines won't go well with it, which is, just an opinion. Soooooo in keeping with santa Cruz, Ridge is always good they have some Cab's and Merlots from Santa Cruz (without going for MontaBello) or perhaps Martin Ray Santa Cruz Mountains Cab.

quote=melkor,Dec 5 2004, 10:31 PM]

It’s been my experience that wines from CA tend to have more fruit, more alcohol, and less acid and minerality than their non-CA counterparts. Because I find they often compete with, rather than complement, the flavors in the food, I prefer to drink CA wines by themselves. On a few occasions we’ve had both at home and at restaurants good success pairing one California wine with one dish, I’ve never had a truly excellent food and wine pairing across multiple dishes when the wine is from CA. White Rhones, on the other hand, regularly (and quite successfully) appear across multiple courses as part of the wine pairing at the French Laundry and other restaurants. That being said, our wine cellar is 35% CA, and I’ve enjoyed some Pinots and Rhone-style wines from CA with food. But since the red-wine-friendly courses at Manresa make up a small portion of the menu (or at least have both times I’ve eaten there), and given that the dinner in question is a festive meal, I think a sparkler would be appropriate.

H

[Rebel Rose]

I doubt the the children still hand color the labels.

Dang it! I knew I should have kept that bottle!

[ludja]

David Bruce-- Pinot Noir or Petit Syrah could be a good choice in addition to Ridge.  Their wines, especially those from the Santa Cruz Mtns applelation, are distinctive and very good.  Also, in the price range you are looking for ($40-$60)

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Just another comment--these are "big" wines--looking at the menu melkor posted (which looks v. exciting!) there could be many courses which would be overpowered by these... The David Bruce Pinot Noir would be a more likely candidate than the Petit Syrahs for the tasting menu. A quick stop at the David Bruce tasting room off of 17 could help in determining if they have an appropriate Pinot....

Speaking of white rhones though (and Santa Cruz Mountain wineries), I just had a very nice white wine from Bonny Doon-- a Roussanne-dominated blend (some Grenache Blanc): Le Cigare Blanc. It is very crisp and has a good amount of acidity. I don't think it is strictlly Santa Cruz Mtn grapes though (if any); the appellation is listed as "California".

(thanks for posting the menu, melkor!)

Edited December 6, 2004 by ludja (log)

[slbunge]

It could be a risk if your ex-FIL thinks of Bonny Doon as too 'cutesy' or non-serious but they do offer some good food wines. Might be nice to get some things through their tasting room or online that they don't distribute. Lots of information on their webstore (although they don't necessarily tell you if the grape variety was grown in the Santa Cruz mountains.

[Rebel Rose]

From Michael Kean, general manager of Manresa:

"I would think 2000 Testarossa, Sleepy Hollow Vineyards, Santa Lucia Highlands. This would do nicely."

Thanks, Michael!

[tanabutler]

From Michael Kean, general manager of Manresa:

"I would think 2000 Testarossa, Sleepy Hollow Vineyards, Santa Lucia Highlands. This would do nicely."

Thanks, Michael!

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Hey, that's cheating! I could call him myself! (And now I will have to, since he doesn't specify which bottle, and they've got seven 2000 reds and five 2000 whites.)

Thank you for noticing, CtznCane, that I specifically requested not only California wines, but wines local to the Santa Cruz mountains, where Manresa is situated. For this dinner, I am not interested in imported wines. I want to show off the local flavor, which is spectacular. Paco has traveled, as I said, the world over, and I am certain that he will be impressed with Manresa, but a little more informed about why we chose to move to this area, and remain here despite the high cost of living. In other words, it's its own little slice of Eden.

I will also recommend that he visit Bonny Doon's tasting rooms, as I am a big fan of BD (the wines and the people who work there). Randall Grahm recently supplied many wines for an Outstanding in the Field farm dinner that took place in a redwood grove in Bonny Doon, which featured foraged foods and Harold McGee.

Off to quiz Michael Kean on the Testarossa choices.

Feel free to keep the suggestions coming, as long as they are specifically Santa Cruz/Monterey Bay region wines, in keeping with the theme here. Thanks, gang of many.

[samgiovese]

Mt. Eden Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are traditional winners.

If you like Cab Franc, Cooper-Garrod makes one of the best I've had.

If you can find it, Kathryn Kennedy Syrah, Maridon Vineyards, is also dynamite.

I also like Cinnabar's Mercury Rising, and Bonny Doon's Le Cigar Volant for proprietary red blends.

A final comment, Bargetto (I know you know the family, Tana) Merlot is my favorite wine by the glass at our local neighborhood trattoria.

[tanabutler]

Ooooh, I love the Kathryn Kennedy suggestion.

Also, along the lines of Bargetto, I thought about Soquel Vineyards (Paul Bargetto was one in the snowstorm), and since I live in Soquel, the terroir thing would be really emphasized. I had a red of theirs that knocked my fishnets off.

Good suggestions, thanks, Samgiovese!

[MsMelkor]

Ooooh, I love the Kathryn Kennedy suggestion.

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I was recently gifted a couple of bottles of Kathryn Kennedy: Lateral and the Estate Cabernet. The Lateral, a Bordeaux blend, was well-balanced and surprisingly earthy. I really enjoyed the Cabernet, but at $145 retail, I wouldn't be able to justify buying it.

[tanabutler]

I guess that one won't particularly fit into the $50 a bottle price I tried to specify. I did mention $50 a bottle? (I just checked, and yeah, I mentioned it.)

I do see at the Kathryn Kennedy web site that there are a half dozen wines available that are affordable. None of them do I know.

So. I guess I should end my queries here. Michael Kean's suggestion should be at the top of my life (assuming one of their wines is available at either K Wines or Shopper's Corner or DeLuxe). Barring that, I'll come up with something wonderful with the relevant suggestions here.

Is it somehow crass to mention a price tag? It's a consideration that is valid for my ex. If someone truly understands that, and can advise, I would appreciate it, on his behalf.

[Carema]

tanab:

I believe the only affordable KK is the lateral, a st emilionesque blend that she does every year with all five grapes, merlot dominant usually, and under fifty bucks. This (depending on vintage but I have had the lateral since 1999) is usually an earthy, well -structured, pretty concentrated wine. They are probably in 2002 by now.

Another winery I just found is Varner Vineyards. Although I do not have a lot of information about these folks, their Home Vineyard Chardonnay blew me away when I tasted it last week, and they are using very old Chardonnay vines that are pre Wente clone which is good news. This chard was structured like a puligny but had such very california chardonnay fruit characters. I sell it for $39 so it should be a little cheaper in CA.

Lastly the Savanahh Chenelle (spelling?) stuff has always been solid, although they do not seem to be in my market right now. Their 1999 cabernet Franc was an herby glass of surprisingly rich wine and I think is was under $30 when we sold it. The 2001 is probably pretty rocking, and the 2002 will be softer, a bit riper most likely.