Santa Barbara Wine Tours

The Rhone Rangers first came to prominence in the ’80s, thanks especially to the efforts of Central Coast wineries like Qupe Winery and Bonny Doon Vineyards with Rhone varietals like Grenache, Mourvedre, Viognier and of course Syrah.

John Alban, of Alban Vineyards, was one of the original Rhone Rangers. He was in fact the first to plant Rhone varietals in the Central Coast region and was instrumental in popularizing Viognier, which is so prevalent now in Santa Barbara County. When he started growing the white wine grape in 1985, there were a mere 50 acres devoted to it even in its ancestral home, the Rhone Valley. He once remarked that, “I almost single-handedly doubled the world’s acreage.”

California Rhone style wines have come a long way, especially in the last few years. The big star in Santa Barbara is Syrah. It’s one of the three grape varieties (the other two being the Burgundian varietals, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay) with which Santa Barbara wineries are producing truly world-class wines.

Both Tensley Wines and Jaffurs Wine Cellars have received accolades for their Syrahs for years.  One wine I recommend is Jaffurs’ Syrah Santa Barbara County Bien Nacido Vineyard ’08. At $42.00 a bottle, it’s a good value. A couple of  real bargains among Santa Barbara County Syrahs are Barrel 27‘s Syrah Santa Barbara County Head Honcho ’07, at $28.00, the Syrah Santa Barbara County ’08 from Rusack Vineyards and The Offering Santa Barbara ’08 from Sans Liege, which both go for just $25.00 a bottle.  And, if you want a good bottle of Syrah for a real bargain basement price, try Syrah Santa Barbara County The Slammer ’07 from Big House. It’s only $12.00.

Then again, if you’d like to pay a nice round number for a true California cult wine, you can part with $200.00 for a bottle of Sine Qua Non‘s Syrah Sta. Rita Hills A shot in the Dark Eleven Confessions Vineyard ’06. Personally, I can’t see paying that kind of money for a bottle of Syrah, but as the Wine Spectator magazine puts it, “Sine Qua Non is in a league of its own, producing ultrarich yet polished reds” (they also make a Grenache that goes for $200.00 a bottle).

Speaking of the Rhone Rangers and California Rhone Style wines though, the region that shines the brightest is Paso Robles, in particular Saxum Vineyards. Their James Berry Vineyard Paso Robles 2007,  a blend of Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, was named Wine of the Year for 2010 by Wine Spectator, and the recently released 2008s are also superb. On the other hand, the 2008 James Berry Vineyard costs $75.00.

But there’s no reason to despair, Saxum is by no means the only game in town when it comes to Paso Robles Rhone style wines. There are other pricey wines to be had, like Epoch‘s Ingenuity Paderewski Vineyard Paso Robles 2008, which goes for $55.00, but there are also some real bargains in Paso Robles. I can recommend three: Barrel 27 Syrah Central Coast Right Hand Man ’07; Vina Robles Red Huerhuero Paso Robles ’08; and Ancient Peaks Syrah Paso Robles ’08. The Barrel 27 offering costs $18.00, and the second two wines are only $16.00 a bottle.