Wine Tasting: California's Other 7%

This tasting was inspired by an event that happens from time to time in San Francisco called The Seven Percent Solution, which brings together winemakers who make wines from "the other 7%" of California grapes. Roughly 93% of Northern California vineyard acreage is planted with eight grape varietals: cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, pinot noir, syrah, merlot, sauvignon blanc, zinfandel, and petite sirah. The remaining 7% of acreage is home to an impressive aggregation of lesser known varietals.

We covered a reasonable selection of these less planted varietals (including mourvedre, carignane, grenache, grenache blanc, cabernet franc, and chenin blanc) from all over Northern California (including San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Sonoma, San Joaquin, Amador, Napa, and Contra Costa counties). I thought they were all good, and the trio of mourvedres were a nice lesson in what that grape is about in California. Without further ado, here's what we had, with my favorites in bold:

1. 2014 Sandlands California Chenin Blanc ($24): This was the first of three bottles that we had made by Tegan Passalacqua's unique Sandlands label. As Bloomberg put it: "Winemaker Tegan Passalacqua is the Indiana Jones of lost vineyards, wandering rural California in a beat-up Subaru, hunting gnarled old vines and forgotten grapes." This chenin is a blend: 40% Lodi, 40% Amador County, 20% Napa Valley. Fantastic green apple aromas on opening. On the palate, crisp, refreshing, but with a hint of weight at the end. 12% alcohol, 10 barrels produced. 
2. 2015 Paix Sur Terre Paso Robles Grenache Blanc ($27): regular wine tasting attendees Orion and Rebecca introduced me to this tiny Paso Robles winery, founded in 2010, that specializes in mourvedre. Turns out they also make a fantastic grenache blanc (technically a mutant of the grenache used for reds, very widely planted in France). Good acid, but also great weight and complexity, citrus finish. Delicious and a good value!
3. 2015 Sandlands Enz Vineyard San Benito County Mataro ($35): the first of our three mourvedres ("mataro" is the Portugese name for mourvedre, which the Spanish call monastrell). The lightest of the three, with a lovely nose (tho they all had that going for them), this nevertheless had a flavor profile which I can only describe as "purple" and reminiscent of some gamay-based wines I've had. It put Orion in mind of game birds as a food pairing, which struck me as exactly right. Good value.
4. 2014 Paix Sur Terre Comes a Time Paso Robles Mourvedre ($52): my favorite of the three mourvedres, and also a crowd favorite, this struck a balance between the lighter style of the Sandlands and the darker Carlisle, blueberry notes on the finish. Not cheap, however! 
5. 2012 Carlisle Bedrock Vineyard Mourvedre ($40): made from among the oldest mourvedre vines in California (planted 1888), this was a darker, more forceful style. Interestingly, the winery actually recommends waiting until 2022 to open this one, but I thought it was drinking well.
6. 2014 Sandlands California Carignane ($28): I probably should have opened this before the mourvedres, as it presented as a simpler, lighter red, touch of orange zest on the palate. Very nice overall, although for the price, I would have bought more of the Paix Sur Terre grenache blanc. A blend: 50% Lodi (own rooted vineyard, planted in 1936), 50% Contra Costa County (vineyard planted in the 1920s). 12.8% alcohol, 10 barrels produced.
7. 2012 Denner Paso Robles Grenache ($60 retail, $51 club): another of my favorite wineries in Paso Robles, Denner makes a wide range of Rhone style wines, which are all very good but never a bargain. This grenache, however, was not like any southern Rhone I've ever had, coming across instead like a well made zinfandel. Big mixed berry fruit, 15% alcohol, almost a hint of sweetness on the finish. As a zin lover, I liked it very much, and I also thought it was perfect with the barbecued pork ribs (24 hours sous vide, 3 hours in smoke). 85% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 5% Cinsault.
8. 2010 Clos Du Bois Sonoma Reserve Cabernet Franc ($40): radically different from everything else we had, this came across with all the nonfruit characteristics of a good cabernet sauvignon (which makes sense, as cabernet franc is usually used as a blending grape in cabernet sauvignon wines). Even with 8 years of age on it, this was still all wood, tannin, tobacco, and stem. Pretty great, called out for roast beef.