Santa Ynez Valley (Part I)

Located in the northern Santa Barbara county and the heart of Santa Barbara´s Wine Country, Santa Ynez is a wonderful option to delicious wine tasting and enjoyable days. It is 35 miles away from SB beaches and 125 up the coast from Los Angeles and 300 miles south of San Francisco. Accesible via automobile, Amtrack offers bus service to Solvang and private planes can arrive to Santa Ynez Valley Airport (IZA).

Six distinctive communities conform SYV: Ballard, Buelton, Los Alamos, Solvang, Los Olivos and Santa Ynez, encircled by the SY and Rafael mountain ranges. The anglicized name Santa Ynez (Saint Agnes) comes from the old Mision Santa Ana In which was the first Spanish settlement in the Valley.

Now that I have mentioned the geographic location and how to get there, I will proceed to narrate my wonderful experience there. Visited this valley for the first time last August and recommend everyone to visit. It is lovely, easy to travel, people are friendly, warm and view is outstanding. Excellent option if you are not that familiarized with wines, vineyards and wine houses because of the warmth of the people working there. They make you feel at home while getting involved or more involved with wines or an expert on the subject.

The places (wineries/vineyards) visited were:

Coquelicot Estate Vineyard

It is located in Grand Avenue in Los Olivos, California. The name comes from the striking red poppy that graces the French countryside. This estate vineyard says to be organically farmed. The sustainable farming and gentle, meticulous winemaking techniques converge to produce limited production wines that are a true celebration of life, according to Louis van Tender (Winemaker/Vineyard Manager)

We tasted:

2007 Estate Viognier: barrel fermented, has sweet notes of candied orange peel, poached pear smothered in fresh whipped cream and sprinkled with crushed toasted almond sprinkles

2007 Estate Sauvignon Blanc: very aromatic, great structure -considered by the winery as their pride and joy- with notes of mint leaves, red grapefruit and provence herbs.

                                      

2007 Estate Chardonnay: has a bright minerality, on the palate has notes of lemon zest, crème fraiche with a lingering finish. Very good.

2007 Estate Sangiovese: aged in neutral barrels, has aromas of dried herbs, Italian espresso and chocolate covered cherries. The fruit is generous and the tannins are just right.

2007 Estate Syrah (93 points): ripe cherries and fine leather hint of fresh tobacco. In mount: full bodied, long finish that lingers and lingers.

2006 Mon Amour Bordeaux Blend: 48% cab 21% Merlot 19% Cabernet Franc 6% Petit Verdot and 6% Malbec; the color is rich garnet (like crushed blackberries), on the nose reminds of Belgian chocolate with notes of cedar. On the mouth: tastes like black fruit and tight tannins that leaves hint of plum and a bit of pomegranate pie. This is their Flagship Red Wine.

More…on Monday!