Kevin says he waits for acidity to come down before sugars get too high. In other places, you reach sugar maturity and acid maturity at the same time. Kevin picks on 3 criteria. Flavor is first. He can taste and predict Brix. When he tastes something, he knows. He has a flavor catalog in mind. For example, the Roberts Road vineyard, he has flavor criteria, and he knows what he wants. Dan says California can have fruit, acid and body without having to sacrifice one.
Greg Jones is a meteorologist and Oregon farmer, who runs a weather forecast site. Visit the Abacela winery website.
Too much oak.
Chardonnay in California usually has too much oak. Kevin’s Montagne Russe Chardonnay is different. It has a bit of lemon oil and tropical fruit. But the acid is holding everything together. 2023 was a cold year. He did half ML on this wine. They use Puncheon barrels, which are 2.2 times larger than regular barrels. That puts less oak per unit of volume, onto the wine.
Next, they taste a 2022 Pinot Noir with spectacular color. 2022 was a difficult vintage. The fruit came from the Sangiacomo family vineyard. Dan says the grower gets credit. When you pay premium prices for fruit, you also get the grower’s expertise and personal care.
Dan finds this wine faintly rustic, as opposed to the bright cherry and berry. It’s a different kind of Pinot Noir. Petaluma Gap always delivers because it has more than just cold climate. It is more subtle and has more character.
When Kevin has picked, he asks around to see who else has picked.
Sometimes he’s the first. Gary Farrell would often pick early too and made great wine.
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On June 9 at 6 pm, the Healdsburg Wine Library is opening the new Millie Howie Memorial Garden and Patio. It’s free to the public and tickets are available at the Healdsburg Wine Library events page.
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The last wine is the Syrah. They have 23 bottles left. 2022 Petaluma Gap Syrah from Keller Estate. The Keller estate had some extra Syrah and Viognier that they offered to him. “Co-fermentation time!” says Dan. They put it all together, 100% whole cluster, 9% Viognier. It spent the final 8 months in stainless steel. He created an entirely different label for it. It came alive after a year in bottle. Dan says that this one “identifies” Syrah, which is meaty in a fruit sense, it’s not gamey.
The Wind to Wine Festival is coming, October 17, 2026. Start planning now!