The SOMM Journal

April / May 2016

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{ SOMMjournal.com }  25 THE PLAYLIST La Voix 2014 "She's Crafty" Rosé of Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills ($30) Made by Chrystal Clifton, this persimmon-tart tense tongue-grabber was inspired by the first rosé style she fell in love with in Bologna, Italy. "It was a masculine style," she tells The SOMM Journal and admits to not being a "dainty lady" herself. "I like to see more red wine characteristics in rosé," she adds, "This wine needs to speak loud when it comes to pairing: Food is its inspiration." The grapes were grown by the Cliftons from the vines at Kessler-Haak, a vineyard located on Highway 246 in Buellton, in the cooler northwest section of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. "She's Crafty" is early 1980s hip hop song, and according to Chrystal Clifton, "the music didn't have to follow any rule." La Voix 2014 "Rebel Rebel" Pinot Noir, Central Coast ($45) Just having lost the iconic David Bowie in January, this is a fitting tribute and was the first song that Steve Clifton ever recorded in a studio over three decades ago. "My rebellion was putting my name on a Pinot Noir for the first time grown out of Santa Barbara County," he confessed. The grapes are grown on the southern tip of San Luis Obispo from the foggy Quinta del Mar Vineyard, which is planted exclusively to Pinot Noir. Taste the blond tobacco wrapper as the red fruit surfaces up amidst a garden of herbs and lilac—it's spicy and fragrant. Trapped in a prism, in a prism of light Alone in the darkness, darkness of white We fell in love, alone on a stage In the reflective age —"Reflektor" by Arcade Fire SONGWRITERS: JEREMY GARA, REGINE CHASSAGNE, RICHARD R PARRY, TIM KINGSBURY, WILLIAM BUTLER, WIN BUTLER Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC La Voix 2013 "Satisfaction" Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills ($75) Sensual, dark chocolate notes and sweet, wild strawberry are spiced with savory tones, and get plusher on the palate with a feminine roundness. This moves like Jagger as much as it sways like the female reaction to his music: sinewy and lusty. The fruit is from the Kessler-Haak Vineyard, which Clifton first started farming in 2007 for the Brewer-Clifton label. La Voix 2012 "Reflektor" Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills ($95) Named after the song (and album) by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, this wine is dark and dense with brush and sage—like a forest trail with leaves and bark, espresso tart cherry tannins and morel mush - rooms. The grapes were grown in the Machado Vineyard on the western side of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. As Clifton explained, "This wine was the only one made from one of the original Brewer- Clifton plantings, causing me to 'reflect' back on 20 years that went into its existence." (As of February 1, Clifton is no longer associated with Brewer-Clifton.) This label design was inspired by the colorful persona and eccentric style of David Bowie and gives a nod to the abstract representation of the fermentation process, according to the Cliftons. The girl is crafty like ice is cold! The girl is crafty, she knows all the moves I started playing records, she knew all the grooves. —"She's Crafty" by The Beastie Boys SongwriterS: riCK rUBin, ADAM HorowitZ, ADAM YAUCH LYriCS © SonY/AtV MUSiC PUBLiSHing LLC, UniVerSAL MUSiC PUBLiSHing groUP

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