Fine Wine Adventures - South Central Coast

The South Central Coast, directly above Los Angeles, includes both Santa
Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties and six AVAs – American Viticultural Appellations. It is a fine example of California’s farm land minus the clamor of tour buses, tanker trucks and heafty lines in winery tasting rooms. Long a “secret supply source” to the more famous Napa and Sonoma
wineries, the Central Coast is becoming more of a destination for wine-savvy consumers.

A Home to Unknown Grapes-It’s great to discover “cutting edge” wineries that are making new and
exciting wines and the San Luis Obispo/Santa Barbara area is definitely the place to go. You’ll find the state’s largest plantings of Rhone varietal grapes – notably Syrah and Viognier, but also Grenache and Mourvèdre. Equally as important are the large plantings of Italian grapes:
Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Pinot Grigio and Pinot Bianco. This doesn’t mean that you can’t find Zinfandel, Cabernet, Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc – they are well-represented as well. There’s plenty of room for everyone!

Coastal Secrets - The secret to understanding wines from the Central Coast is ‘hang time’
– the time the grapes flower until harvest. In the Edna Valley region of San
Luis Obispo County and the Santa Maria region of Santa Barbara
County, 150 days of ‘hang time’ is common. By comparison, Napa Valley grapes ripen three weeks earlier. Napa grapes are usually picked in September to avoid October rains. It rarely rains in the Central Coast until December. Consequently, those grapes can mature over a longer time period. The result is an unusually strong intensity of supple flavors in the Central Coast wines. That’s the secret!

Wine Appellations

Santa Ynez Valley
Santa Maria Valley
Arroyo Grande
Edna Valley
York Mountain
Paso Robles

Some recent Central Coast Wine Club offerings:

Edna Valley Vineyards
EOS Estate
Santa Barbara Winery
Wild Horse Winery
Zaca Mesa Vineyards

Travels to Central Coast

Southern Central Coast is a delightful part of California’s vast Wine
Country. It has the right visitor’s mix of world-class wines along with
quaint coastal towns and their regional activities.

A must-see is the famous Hearst Castle at San Simeon. Over a hundred
rooms, gardens, art, sculpture – nothing like a little excess now and then!
There are 5 separate tours!

In June, Paso Robles has an Air Show and Pismo Beach has a Street Rod Car
Show. July brings forth fireworks everywhere along with a Mozart Festival and
a Renaissance Fair in San Luis Obispo. Later in August there is the Mid-State
Fair in Paso Robles and a “Cruiser” Car Show in Atascadero.

Recommended Lodging

Casa del Mar 800-433-3097
18 Bath Street
Santa Barbara, CA

Ascot Inn 800-887-6454
845 Morro Avenue
Morro Bay, CA

Recommended Dining

Sea Cliffs 805-773-3555
2557 Shell Beach Rd Lunch/Dinner
Pismo Beach, CA

Big Sky Cafe 805-545-5401
1211 Broad St. Lunch/Dinner
San Luis Obispo, CA

This Month's Wines....

Chardonnay
by Sharon Rosenbaum, Senior Wine Buyer

At about 343,000 acres, Chardonnay is the world's 8th most widely planted grape with California alone growing a third of the total. In the US wine mark et, Chardonnay is far and away the leader in terms of volume of sales and, among all the major grape varieties grown in California, it fetches the highest prices.

What makes Chardonnay so special? Experienced winemakers can “layer” a Chardonnay giving it more more complexity. The most flavorful ones, for example, savor a sojourn in French oak barrels. The grape doesn't have a lot of intrinsic flavor: some say citrus, apple-pie or tropical fruit, so it reacts well to barrel contact with its lees while ageing. This adds texture and enhances the wine's flavors (called “sur lie” ageing). Chardonnays can often undergo a secondary, or malolactic, fermentation. The end results are a reduction in acidity and the production of the wine’s characteristic "buttery" flavor.

2000 Copper Beach California

This 2000 Chardonnay was produced from grapes grown in several of
California’s more renowned vineyards, located in cool, coastal regions. These grapes contribute tropical and citrus fruit aromas and flavors. Each vineyard’s grapes were treated as individual lots. A portion of the blend was barrel fermented to create the lush, creamy texture as a balance to the crisp, citrus style of the other lots.

Attractive aromas show lovely notes of citrus and apple. Flavors are complex, focusing on buttery pear and apricot. A light thread of oak runs through the fruit-filled finish. The wine pairs well with a wide variety of dishes including vegetarian pastas or roast chicken. Delicious now and over the next year.

2002 Aubusson San Luis Obispo

This wine was produced from Chardonnay grapes grown in the Stephan Illey Vineyard outside Paso Robles, about 35 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean. The warm days and fog-cooled nights and mornings are ideal for Chardonnay. The 2001 harvest was light – only 3 tons per acre – which allowed higher natural sugars, so that even though the wine is perfectly dry, it offers a rich and fruity, round texture. Only the free run juice from the press was used, resulting in a softer Chardonnay. Flavors are of ripe melon, guava and hints of citrus. Enjoy with poultry or seafood dishes today and over the next 18 months.

Camille Stagg is a food, wine and travel journalist and author. Her latest book is "The Eclectic Gourmet Guide to Chicago" (Menasha Ridge Press). She was food editor of both the Chicago Sun-Times and Cuisine magazine. 

Broiled Lemon-Garlic Shrimp

Ingredients

11/2 pounds large fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/3 cup Chardonnay
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp minced fresh tarragon or oregano
Grated rind of 1/2 lemon

Garlic Paste Rub

2 cloves garlic, smashed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika

Preparation

Combine Chardonnay, lemon juice, olive oil, tarragon and grated lemon rind in a small bowl. Let stand 5 minutes for flavors to blend. Pour over shrimp in a shallow glass dish. Marinate 4 minutes. Remove shrimp; reserve marinade.

Garlic Paste Rub: in a small bowl, blend garlic with salt, pepper, paprika and enough reserved marinade to get a “paste” consistency. Brush over the shrimp. Discard remaining marinade.

Place shrimp on oiled broiler pan and
cook in preheated broiler, about 4 inches from heat, for about 11/2 to 2 minutes per side. Serve immediately with hot, cooked pasta.

For a larger group, you might want to cook the shrimp in their shells and let guests peel them.

Makes 4 servings.
Preparation time: about 20 minutes
Cooking time: about 4 minutes
Marinade time: about 4 minutes

Quote:

Benjamin Franklin
American Author, Scientist, Statesman 1706–1790