Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/780573
88 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } FEBRUARY/MARCH 2017 Day 3 Exploration of West Livermore Valley In the morning of our final day, our som- meliers were taken on a swing through the west end of Livermore Valley, starting at the boutique-sized Cuda Ridge Wines, where owner/grower/winemaker Larry Dino woke us up with his Cuda Ridge 2015 Semillon, sourced from the original Louis Mel Vineyard now cultivated by the Wentes: a refreshingly tart, lemony, spicy, silky dry white, slapping the senses with burnt orange peel sensations. According to Dino, "While generalizations are always dangerous, the west side is closer to the Bay, and tends to be foggier earlier and longer than the east side. It's a different type of moderated climate where it's more possible, for instance, to grow Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. The soil types tend to be a finer sandy loam, different from the deep gravel beds you find at Concannon in the mid-valley and less red clay mixed in with the sandy loam found on east side slopes." Following Dino's introduction, we entered the Cuda Ridge tasting room to sample wines by west side Livermore Valley producers; notably: Fenestra 2014 Semmonay (73.5% Chardonnay; 24% Semillon; 2.5% Verdelho) The proprietary name may be, shall we say, creative, but who cares? This is a dynamite blend; silky, creamy textured and redolent with apple, pear and key lime sensations. Las Positas 2011 Coccineous A fortuitous blend in two ways—visionary owner/growers (Lisa and Lothar Maier) with talented wine- maker (Brent Amos, formerly at Fenestra), and an artful weaving of estate-grown Tempranillo (49%), Petite Sirah (36%), Syrah and Malbec, coming across like a basketful of blueberries; lush, luxurious, zesty, sinewy and sensuous. Las Positas 2011 Tempranillo This red awak- ens the senses to the promising possibilities of Spanish grapes in west side Livermore Valley's moderated Mediterranean terroir; earthy breaths combine with brilliant berry/ cherry fruit, finely wrought, bouncy and balanced through a long, lingering finish. Cuda Ridge 2014 Cabernet Franc You gotta shout when Cabernet Franc doesn't taste like limp canned vegetables; this one is the opposite—bright and pure with raspberry notes, firm and meaty in a medium bodied feel. Dante Robere 2013 Estate Syrah Low-key earthy notes serve to brighten floral, plummy, violet-like perfumes, bolstered by moderate tannin in a fairly full body. Our second stop was at Murrieta's Well, which the Wente family has recently transformed into an ultra-premium, strictly handcrafted, limited-production brand, allow - ing Director of Winemaking Robbie Meyer (whose past credentials include P eter Michael, Lewis Cellars and Jericho Canyon) to pick and choose out of the 500 acres of vineyard surrounding the historic tasting room. At the bottom level of Louis Mel's original gravity-flow winery (now utilized by Murrieta's Well as a private event room), Meyer told us, "It's great to have access to fruit grown in flats, on hillsides, the more than half-dozen soil variations and wind expo - sures throughout the Livermore Valley. But not only that, the Wente team also farms to my specifications, which may be completely different from what Karl Wente wants." The result, predictably, is "Wow!" Meyer, as our sommeliers discovered, even makes Chardonnay fulfilling once again—his Murrieta's Well 2014 Small Lot Chardonnay bristling with as much minerality as citrus, lemon peel and cake spices in notable absence of more typically Californian ripe apple/pineapple fruitiness, with a fine, silken tension on the palate. The Wentes are also placing their bets on Meyer's mastery of blending. At Cuda Ridge Wines (left to right): Dan Rosenberg, co-founder of Dante Robere; Larry Dino, owner/grower/winemaker, Cuda Ridge; Lanny Replogle, founder/owner of Fenestra Winery; and Brent Amos, winemaker for Las Positas. PHOTO: RANDY CAPAROSO The Cuda Ridge 2015 Semillon is sourced from the original Louis Mel Vineyard now cultivated by the Wentes. The Murrieta's Well Small Lot Chardonnay is "Bristling with minerality." The Wente family has transformed Murrieta's Well into an ultra-premium, strictly handcrafted, limited-produc- tion brand.