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by Robert Parker
This brilliant artisinal project of Greg Brewer continues to offer what are basically the naked/most virginal side of Chardonnay possible – all from cool-climate sites in the Santa Rita Hills. As I said last year, these tour de force efforts prove you can have extraordinary precision, minerality, and freshness in wines that usually have around 15% natural alcohol. As a postscript, these wines are all fermented at very cold temperatures, with malolactic fermentation blocked, and kept cold on their lees until bottling, which is very early. No one else in California is doing anything remotely like what Greg Brewer has achieved with Diatom.
A new vineyard has been added to the portfolio, and the debut is exceptional. The 2009 Chardonnay Drum Canyon (15.5% alcohol) has intensely perfumed notes of white peach, nectarine, pear, and tropical fruit blossoms. Its terrific acidity tends to conceal a relatively full-bodied powerhouse of a wine in the mouth. The crispness and freshness give it a zestiness and definition that are remarkable for such a concentrated, naked Chardonnay. This is a beauty to drink over the next several years. 94 points
The 2009 Chardonnay Clos Pepe (14.7%) has very short acids, which kept my score from going higher. It is a more medium-bodied wine, with notes of orange zest, quince, white currant, straw, and wet stones. The acid levels are ferocious, and while the wine is fresh and focused, you have to be a real acid freak to enjoy this. At any rate, there is not much of this wine, since it comes from a one-acre parcel, compared to the three-acre parcel of the Drum Canyon. 90 points
My two favorites included the 2009 Chardonnay Babcock, which comes from sandy clay/loamy soils in the Santa Rita Hills over shale, and tips the scales at 15.5% alcohol. This wine has more honeysuckle, orange blossom, nectarine notes, with a hint of tropical fruit. It has terrific acidity as well, but it possesses explosive ripeness, richness, and a broad, complex texture and finish. This superb Chardonnay should drink well for 3-4 years. 95 points
The 2009 Chardonnay Huber, from an old Wente clone that boasts 24 years of age, is the purest, most grand cru Chablis-like of all these wines. Lemon and lime blossoms intermixed with nectarine, tangerine, honey, and powdered rock are all present in this full-bodied (15.9% alcohol), exquisite Chardonnay that proves that blockbuster power and quintessential finesse can be one and the same thing in a wine. It should drink well for 3-4 years. 97 points
Radical Chardonnays
Jay McInerney, writing in the Wall Street Journal, reviewed several chardonnay wines produced by Greg, including wines from diatom, Brewer-Clifton and Melville:
I have sometimes thought that the Brewer-Clifton Chardonnays tasted like turbocharged Chablis and in fact Chablis is a passion... ...After a 2004 visit to the area, including a quasi-religious experience tasting in the cellar of Domain Raveneau, Mr. Brewer was inspired to start a new Chardonnay project called Diatom, named for the areas diatomaceous marine soils.
"I think of Brewer-Clifton as skiing, Melville Inox as snowboarding and Diatom as the X Games," Mr. Brewer says. "I wanted to push Chardonany to an absolute extreme."
Extreme, but minimal. For his Diatom Chardonnays, which are vinified like Inox, he lets the grapes get very, very ripe, riper than Inox, which in a hotter area would result in a flabby wine. The result is radical indeed, an extreme example of the fat/lean syndrome. Diatom is so radical, it's deviant," Mr. Brewer says. He sees heavily oaked Chardonnays as elaborately cooked and sauced dishes. "Diatom is like a piece of toro, fatty but also pure and minimal," he says. He also believes the minimalist winemaking style lets the characteristics of the vineyards, and the area, shine through. It's unique and yet it highlights the family traits of the region. I like to pour these chards for friends who claim they don't like California Chardonnay. Even those who aren't instantly converted tend to be pleasantly surprised.
Click here for the full article.
by
Josh Raynolds
Chardonnay Babcock Sta. Rita Hills 2008
Bright
gold. Musky citrus pith and pear skin on the nose, which also features
notes of toasted nuts and spicecake. A broad, sappy wine that
offers gently sweet orange and pear flavors, with hints of smoky lees
and dried flowers adding complexity. The richest wine of this set,
finishing with strong thrust and noteworthy clarity and energy for
such power.
93 points
Chardonnay Huber Sta. Rita Hills 2008
Vivid
pale gold. Exotic aromas of candied lemon, gingerbread, green apple and
pear. Expansive and rich but not over the top, offering zesty
citrus flavors and a deeper note of ripe pear, with tangy spices adding
vibrancy. Manages to be both big and lithe, with strong finishing spiciness
and mineral tang.
93 points
Chardonnay Clos Pepe Sta. Rita Hills
2008
Yellow-gold. Ripe pear and nectarine aromas are complicated by allspice
and cinnamon, plus a bright kiss of lemon zest. Juicy and nicely focused,
with sweet citrus and orchard fruit flavors and bracing minerality. The
spiciness gains strength on the finish, which is nervy as well as expansive.
This complex and extremely interesting chardonnay will be very flexible
with all sorts of seafood.
92 points
by Robert Parker
These minimalist tank-fermented Chardonnays, with malolactic fermentation blocked, are brilliant achievements from wunderkind Greg Brewer. These wines essentially prove the inconceivable – that high alcohol wines with extraordinary minerality and precision, great elegance, and floral characteristics that never taste heavy, are as fresh and vibrant as any wine can be. Nothing like these Chardonnays is being produced anywhere else in California. Readers should keep in mind they all possess natural alcohols in the 15.7-15.8% range.
The 2008 Chardonnay Clos Pepe Vineyard reveals crisp lemon blossom and orange marmalade notes, a light gold/straw color, elegant mango, quince, and wet stone-like flavors, crisp acids, and a full-bodied, long finish. This impressive white should drink well for several years. It is hard to predict how long these wines will last, but from my cellar, the Brewer-Clifton Chardonnays (which see about one-third new oak) from as far back as 2000 are holding up amazingly well. 93 points
The 2008 Chardonnay Babcock Vineyard possesses plenty of white citrus, orange blossom, honeyed grapefruit, spring flower, crushed rock, and white currant characteristics. Beautifully full with striking delineation, excellent precision and freshness, and full-bodied length, it should drink well for 7-10 years. 94 points
Having produced wines of such balance, freshness, and purity without any sense of heaviness or heat is remarkable. Lastly, a monumental Chardonnay is the 2008 Chardonnay Huber Vineyard. Its light to medium straw color is followed by a sweet bouquet of lemon butter, orange oil, lemon grass, and wet rocks. The wine flows over the palate with exceptional vibrancy, impressive acidity, and stunning concentration as well as length. 95 points
All three of these Chardonnays taste like a grand cru Chablis made from fruit grown in the Central Coast’s cool Santa Rita Hills region. Bravo!
by
Steve Heimoff
2007 Babcock Chardonnay
Diatom is Greg Brewer's (Brewer-Clifton, Melville) audacious concept of
crafting single-vineyard Chardonnays that are unoaked, or occasionally
see a barrel at least five years old. The theory is to let the terroir
shine. The Babcock is the lushest, more opulent of his three new releases.
It shows fine acidity and firm minerality, but it really marked by lemondrop,
creamy lemon custard and vanilla flavors.
94 points
2007 Clos Pepe Chardonnay
You don't usually think of tannins in Chardonnay, but somehow they assert
themselves in this dry, dusty wine. That may be because it's unoaked,
which leaves unexplained how it gets all that creamy, smoky, vanilla-infused
richness. It's very delicious, and brims with tropical pineapple, golden
mango, lime and honeysuckle flavors.
94 points
2007 Huber Chardonnay
This unoaked Chardonnay, tasted in October, had bright, tingly acidity
that was almost effervescent, a trait that should disappear by the time
this review appears. Even without oak influences, it's a tremendously
satisfying wine, brimming with pineapple pie filling, Meyer lemon custard
and peppery spice flavors. Might even age.
94 points
These wines are nothing short of revolutionary. Completely stainless steel fermented and aged, this winemaking team has been successful in their efforts to produce a grand cru-like Chablis style in the Central Coast with no exposure to oak, taking full advantage of the extraordinary growing conditions in the Santa Rita Hills. The aromatics of these wines are off the charts, and the flavors extraordinary. For any of those who would argue that oak is an integral part of Chardonnay winemaking, these wines are the antithesis of that. It is hard to know how these will age, but they seem incredibly pure and very long, although I would still opt for drinking them in their first 2-3 years of life.
Absolutely mind-boggling is the 2007 Chardonnay Huber. White citrus, wet stones, peach, and apricot blossom as well as tropical fruit oils give this wine extraordinary complexity and sensational richness. Remarkable purity and great length further characterize this wine, which should drink nicely for another several years. 95 points
The 2007 Chardonnay Babcock is much more exotic, with ripe pineapple, pear, white currant, quince, and some subtle earthy, loamy soil undertones. The wine has fabulous fruit, sensational flavor penetration on the palate, but no sense of heaviness. Extraordinary precision gives this wine amazing vibrancy in spite of its formidable size. 94 points
The 2007 Chardonnay Clos Pepe is probably the best wine I have ever tasted from that vineyard. Extraordinary ripeness of white currants, white peach, lemon blossom, citrus oil, and a hint of honeysuckle is followed by a wine with fabulous body, flavor, depth, precision, and remarkable finesse and elegance in spite of some substantial alcohol. This is a tour de force in winemaking. It is hard to know how these will age, but they seem incredibly pure and very long, although I would still opt for drinking them in their first 2-3 years of life. 93 points
by Josh Raynolds
2007 Chardonnay Clos Pepe Santa Rita Hills
Light yellow-gold. Vibrant apple, pear and quince on the nose, with subtle
baking spice and white pepper notes adding complexity. Improbably light
on its feet for a wine witrh so much alcohol, offering spicy orchard fruit
aqnd bitter citrus zest flavors, with floral honey on the back end. Strikingly
elegant for its head-spinning (on paper at least) alcohol levels. Finishes
clean and unexpected cut. I felt like I'd gone down the rabbit hole with
this one. 93
2007 Chardonnay Babcock Santa Rita Hills
Bright yellow. Leesy, mineral-driven aromas of white peach, honeydew melon,
talc and baking spices. Sappy pit fruit flavors are enlivened by peppery
spice and become more tangy with air. Finishes waxy and firm, with a repeating
spiciness. This became more lively with air: decent it a bit if you plan
to serve it in the next year or so. 92
2007 Chardonnay Huber Santa Rita Hills
Bright gold. Powerful smoky, floral nose displays mango, yellow rose,
honeysuckle and cured meat scents. Juicy orange and exaotic fruit flavors
stain the palate and are brightened by tangy minerals. Baling spices arrive
with air and carry through a long, sappy finish. Offers a very suave blend
of richness and energy. 93
by James Laube
Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills Clos Pepe 2007
Fresh and lively, with zesty grapefruit and citrus-infused lemon and green
apple flavors that are vibrant yet elegant. Drink now through 2011.
Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills Babcock 2007
Lively, with fresh, intense lime, ginger and tart nectarine flavors that
are trim and tight, with zingy acidity. Drink now through 2010.
Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills Huber
Tart and tangy, offering zesty acidity and hints of mineral, tangerine
and lime flavors. Ends with a cleansing aftertaste. Drink now through
2010.
Best of the Best 2008:
Domestic White Wines:
Diatom 2006 Chardonnay Clos Pepe
Brett Anderson
20th Annual Best of the Best, June 2008
"The japanese sense of style is the accumulation of long and seriously beautiful aesthetic thought," writes Truman Capote in his brief essay "Style: and the Japanese." "Although . . . a principle basis of this thought is dread—dread of the explicit, the emphatic—hence the single blade of grass describing a whole universe of summer, the slightly lowered eyes left to suggest the deepest passion."
Even Greg Brewer — though his particular art involves grapes, rather than ink or paint — has taken from his time spent in Japan lessons in style that have informed not only his personal tastes, but the taste, texture, and bottle design of his wines as well.
"I love Japan," acknowledges the winemaker, who, along with business partner Steve Clifton, founded Santa Barbara County’s cult wine label Brewer-Clifton in 1995. "I love the Japanese reverence for raw material and especially nature. And also the discipline of execution, which is almost stereotypically Japanese in some ways. I’ve always wanted to take that sensibility and infuse it into what I do."
Brewer’s own winemaking project, a portfolio of single-vineyard Chardonnays called Diatom, represents the application of this minimalist aesthetic to his craft.
...just
getting ready to release his new Chardonnay creation, Diatom, named for
the white, chalk-like sedimentary remains of the fossilized sea creatures
found throughout the soils.
"Our wines don't speak loudly of our handling, but more to the soils in which they're grown," says the winemaker. "My inspiration is a desire to purely capture this site by name and by place." This philosophy, as well as Brewer's reputation for aromatics in his wines and his innate sense of delicacy, are all telltale signs of what's to come in the glass.
With the three-year-old Diatom project, Brewer is finally ready to make a commanding statement. This neo-Chardonnay is a Zen-like creature that leans more towards broken glass than citrus and melon. Fermented cold in stainless steel and ML-inhibited, three different single-vineyard versions of Diatom represent the pre-dawn of a new style for Chardonnay, a varietal that may henceforth be associated with an austere and futuristic lightness of being.
The
amazing 2006 Chardonnay Huber is a brilliant
example of full-bodied power buttressed by considerable acidity, lemon
butter, tangerine, mango, and exotic fruits. It is a steely, lean but
powerful Chardonnay oozing with minerality and tropical fruit. Consume
it over the next 5-6 years. 94 points
The Chardonnay on steroids, the 2006 Chardonnay Clos Pepe Vineyard exhibits an exuberant lemon custard-like character accompanied by bees’ wax, pear, and orange rind notes. With fabulous fruit, full body, and zesty underlying acidity, it will provide immense pleasure over the next several years. 92 points
Diatom fashions Chablis-styled, 100% Chardonnays that see no wood aging. Both the fermentation and aging process take place in stainless steel, resulting in bold, brilliant wines that demonstrate what Chardonnay can achieve without any make-up.
In
their Annual California Chardonnay Report, Wine Spectator highlighted
diatom in their review of "Minimalists" - winemakers who prefer
not to manipulate the wine and "embrace an asthetic that shuns new
oak and emphasizes bright acidity." "Growers emphasize that
viticulture has to be especially attentive." "For impassioned
practitioners of the style, however, the pleasures are philosophical as
well as gustatory. 'I think this asthetic is a purer, well-intentioned
expression of Chardonnay,' says Brewer."
10 To Watch
Winemaker Greg Brewer makes Chardonnay (as well as Pinot Noir and Syrah)
for Brewer-Clifton and Melville, but Diatom represents his personnal vision
of Chardonnay: pure expression, cool-climate, single-vineyard wines. Brewer
picks his grapes when they're extremely ripe, then cold-soaks them. His
wines never see the inside of a barrel and he inhibits malolactic fermentation,
resulting in crisp, flinty Chardonnays.
