Grapelive Wine of the Day
October 10, 2018
2017 Samuel Louis Smith, Pinot Noir, Albatross Ridge Vineyard, Monterey County.
Sam Smith is one of Monterey’s new stars, coming from the Santa Barbara area and having made wines at Margerum he now crafts the wines and is the head winemaker at Morgan Winery where he has really raised the game at this longtime area classic, as well as producing a fine set of wines under his own label. Monterey’s new generation of winemakers are taking it to the next level and certainly Smith is a great addition to this group, he joins Jeff Pisoni of Pisoni Estate and Lucia Vineyards, Scott Shapely of Roar, Ian Brand, I. Brand & Family Winery and Russell Joyce of Joyce Wine Company, just to name a few of the local talents, that have pushed the region to new heights. The 2017 vintage is another level all together for this area, the early tastings I’ve done have revealed amazing quality and Sam’s upcoming releases are outstanding, especially this terrific Carmel Valley grown Albatross Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir, it looks set to be one of the best wines of vintage! I’ve tasted almost every Carmel Valley wine over the years, being a native to the area, and I gotta say this 2017 Albatross Ridge, while still an infant and young, shows a depth and complexity that is almost beyond all my expectations, it’s going to blow some minds! This vineyard, owned by the Bowlus Family, set on an ancient seabed, these south facing hillsides only six miles from the Pacific only gets tiny yields, most often less than a ton an acre, is an extreme site wind swept and with rocky chalky soils that is a challenge to farm, but can produce brilliant fruit in the right vintage as Sam’s 2017 proves. Smith took a brave decision to push the envelope with the winemaking, closing to employ about 30% whole cluster, which can prove tricky here, but was rewarded with much greater complexity, texture and heightened aromatics as well as really making the fruit pop. The one third new oak adds a level of luxury that balances the stem tension and savory tones as well as the cool climate acidity without over shadowing the delicate nature of the flavors that are a hallmark of this vineyard. I was lucky enough to sit down with Sam and taste this upcoming release along with his 2017 Sandstone Terrace Santa Cruz Mountains Syrah, both these wines absolutely rock and will be must have Monterey Bay influenced offerings and while I enjoyed his 2016 bottlings these are huge leaps up in quality and style, especially this 2017 Albatross Ridge Pinot. Gorgeous in detail and form with sexy mouth feel and energy it delivers tons of terroir personality and purity showing beautiful fruit layers of black cherry, tart plum, wild strawberry and a hint of grenadine as well as a hint of blueberry, plus a sense of dark roses, a burst of blood orange, tea spice, subtle oak toast with a faint vanilla, cinnamon and chalk notes coming in focus with air. Can’t wait to see how this wine progresses in bottle, seriously awesome stuff even in it’s youthful stage it has massive potential, I think Pinot fans will want to get on Sam’s mailing list ASAP! Drink this from 2020 to 2028, if you can be patient, if not there is no reason I can fault to enjoy it upon release, which looks like to be around Christmas time, don’t miss it.
($44 Est.) 94-96 Points, grapelive