The SOMM Journal

October / November 2016

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120 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2016 the Talley's top-tier wines, the single-vineyard Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs that garner the most attention from critics and collectors. "The choice as to which blocks are used for single-vineyard wines and which are used for the Estate releases is based solely on the vineyard," Brian says. "We vinify every block separately, so over the years we've been able to identify the best blocks, and those are the ones we use. It's not barrel selection, it's not a 'reserve' wine; it's driven by the vineyard. For example, the section of Rosemary's planted in 1987 by my Dad, it's just proven itself to be consistently the best, the backbone of the vineyard, so that's what we use for our Rosemary's release." In 1999, Talley added a companion label to the operation, and began making Bishop's Peak wines using grapes sourced solely from San Luis Obispo County. Bishop's Peak, which now accounts for another 16,000 cases, allows Talley's team to work with Bordeaux varieties. The flagship wine, Elevation, is a Bordeaux blend sourced from the Margarita Vineyard in Paso Robles. Over the years, Brian and his wife, Johnine, have maintained strong ties to the community. In 2004, they founded the Fund for Vineyard and Farmworkers, which supports programs for the region's farmworkers and their families including a youth literacy program called Raising a Reader, a medical clinic in San Luis Obispo and a junior high and high school program that aims to create first-generation college students. The fund's endowment is currently $600,000—a sum that was partly generated by the Talleys' donating the profits from a special wine they make each year called Mano Tinta ("red hand"). For Brian Talley, all of these pursuits are as close to home as running the farm his grandfather first planted. "It comes down to sitting in my kitchen with Johnine and our daughters at the end of the day, enjoying a glass of wine from our vineyard and enjoying produce from our farm," he says. "We're just really lucky to be living in a place that's this beautiful, where the product we make is so special and enjoyed by so many people." www.talleyvineyards.com The Vineyards of Talley Vineyards Since the initial planting of the Rincon Vineyard, Talley has grown to include six vineyards in the Arroyo Grande and Edna Valley AVAs: Rosemary's Vineyard Located about a mile south of the winery in the Arroyo Grande AVA, this hilltop vineyard is named for Rosemary Talley, Brian's mother, and surrounds her residence. Planted in 1987, the 29-acre site is divided into 12 acres of Chardonnay and 17 acres of Pinot Noir. Steep and well-drained, the vineyard has a soil structure of shale and loam, with a bit of clay in the subsoil. With its ocean influence, Rosemary's Vineyard is the coolest of the Talley sites. Winemaker Eric Johnson (left) and Brian Talley examine an incoming lot of Pinot Noir during harvest.

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