A taste of the coast
A taste of the coast
By: Paul Ulrich, Wine Columnist
Bakersfield has many ties to winemaking in California, including Paso Robles, which is truly a world-class wine producer. In October, I visited two wineries with local ties, both located along the Highway 46 West corridor. My first stop was Croad Vineyards. Martin Croad is an electrical contractor, and continues to run his contracting business here. Atop a hill in the Templeton gap, the winery boasts a spectacular view and is definitely worth the trip. About 80 percent of the wines produced by Croad are estate-grown. They have 20 acres planted with zinfandel, syrah, grenache, morvedre and petite sirah. The production is currently 1,500 cases annually. All of the wine is sold through the estate, which just celebrated its one-year anniversary.
I tasted most of the current releases. Croad produces three Rhone blends; my favorite was ariki, which is a syrah-predominant blend. The winery also makes a delicious award-winning 2006 zinfandel. Martin is from New Zealand and uses Maori names for many of his wines. (There is also a kiwi bird on the corks, and the “No Aussies” posting at the entrance to the winery!) The tasting room is open noon to 5 p.m. Thursday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Try to include a stop at the winery on your next visit to the coast, you will not be disappointed.
The next stop was at Grey Wolf Cellars. This winery was started in 1994 by Joe and Shirlene Barton and is now run by Shirlene and son Joe. Joe is a West High School and Cal Poly SLO graduate. Grey Wolf produces zinfandel, cabernet and a variety of blended red wines. They also produce a white Rhone blend and a rose.
Joe also crushed some Edna Valley chardonnay this fall. Joe names many of his wines after the wolf pack hierarchy and theme. He says that he feels the names reflect what he is producing in the bottle. I truly appreciate all of Joe’s wines, which are excellent, although I prefer the Alpha Cabernet and Big Bad Zinfandel.
Joe does it all at the winery, from growing the grapes to blending the wines. He also buys some grapes from some of the top vineyards in the Central Coast as he believes the most important part of making good wine is to start with good fruit. I think that the result of his hard work certainly reflects in the finished product.
If you ever get the opportunity, visit during the crush to get an appreciation for the raw, newly fermented wine. You will never forget the smell of the character of the variety of the individual grape. It also gives you a greater appreciation for what is in the finished product. When I visited, Joe was finishing the crush for this year. Grey Wolf had completed a new addition to the winery to help process all of the grapes. Cabernet sauvignon was delivered the day I was there, and it was the last varietal to be crushed and fermented this year. This vineyard is worth a stop when you visit Paso Robles.
Along with producing great wines, Paso Robles winemakers are also known for their neighborliness, as they are a group that doesn’t hesitate to help one another. Martin Croad told me that Joe Barton provides help and suggestions whenever he has questions. Because of the rain in mid-October, Croad had to pick their grapes quickly. Donatoni Winery helped Croad by providing a wine press to process all of the grapes for barrel storage and aging. While I tasted at Croad, another winemaker visited the tasting room to see how the harvest went, and to purchase some wine. It is so nice to see a group of people with a common interest work together and help each other when the need arises.
Croad Vineyards
croadvineyards.com
805-226-9899
Grey Wolf Cellars
greywolfcellars.com
805-237-0771