2021 Margerum Wine Co, Riviera Rosé, Santa Barbara County.
It was great, as noted in a recent review of one of their wines, to catch up with Margerum and their latest releases, especially this Riviera Rosé which is done in a bone dry style that reminds you of the Provence version and relies mostly on Grenache, that gives this wine a brisk, but flavorful presence in the glass and makes it very inviting. This 2021 vintage is one of the best versions I’ve tried from Santa Barbara’s Margerum Wine Co, led by Doug Margerum, a local legend in the region, its ultra pale pinkish/salmon hue and mineral driven profile delivering a fine performance. The mouth is bright, steely and taut with ruby grapefruit, sour cherry, strawberry, watermelon and pomegranate fruits, along with a touch of spice, rosewater, garden herbs and wet stones. Perfect for the Summer season and great with lighter meals and a variety of dishes, including sea food stews, picnic fare and farm cheeses. Margerum’s current collection is tasty stuff, from this wine to their signature Rhone varietal wines, in particular their Syrah(s) and red blend M5, which is delicious and full bodied value. That said, Margerum does some impressive whites too and their Sauvignon Blanc is defiantly worth chasing down, it is one of best you’ll find on the Central Coast.
The Margerum Riviera Rosé was made from primarily Grenache 86%, and blended with 7% Counoise, 5% Syrah and just 2% of Mourvèdre, all the grapes were sourced from selected vineyards and plots within the greater Santa Barbara region, including the Margerum Estate Vineyard in the Los Olivos District, as well as Portico Hills, Kingsley, Camp 4, Zaca Mesa, Lieff Ranch, and Riata Oaks vineyards. The process with this Dry Rosé was to make a crisp and refreshing wine, but one that had enough ripe flavors and texture to please the palate, so Margerum used mainly grapes specifically for their Rosé production, harvested a bit early then crush and immediately pressed to stainless steel tanks for a very cold fermentation to preserve the freshness. The wine also sees various lots of Counoise, Syrah, Mourvèdre and other Grenache lots that were saignéed, which gave a bit more color and richness. Margerun adds, that Saignée is a winemaking process where riper juice bleed off a portion of the must from a red wine lot right after crush. Since most of grapes came in with lower sugars, the finished natural alcohol is just about 12% and to preserve vibrancy 97% was aged only in the stainless with a tiny amount seeing a couple of months of neutral oak. If you’ve not experienced with these Margerum wines, it is a great time to explore them, they are all solid efforts.
($26 Est.) 91 Points, grapelive