DC -- POP-UP TASTING Featuring RAMEY WINES

After sixteen years making wine in Sonoma County, and firmly establishing Matanzas Creek and Chalk Hill wineries in the marketplace, David crossed the Mayacamas to spend six years in the Napa Valley–first as winemaker for Dominus Estate (owned by Christian Moueix, of Pétrus) and project manager for the construction of their new winery; then helping Leslie Rudd reshape the Girard Winery into Rudd Oakville.
David’s groundbreaking work with indigenous yeasts, sur lies aging and malolactic and barrel fermentation yielded a new California style that was richer, more lush and silky smooth than previously known. As a result, he created a benchmark style now emulated by many.
David earned a graduate degree from the University of California at Davis, where his 1979 thesis on volatile ester hydrolysis (translation: how aromas evolve in wine) is still used today to understand how wine ages. But shortly afterwards, a stint working for the Moueix family at the renowned Château Pétrus introduced David to the time-honored methods of winemaking in France. He brought his lessons home and applied them to the grapes he found growing in California’s premier wine regions.
WINE TASTING MENU
Ramey Chardonnay Platt Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 2012 
"…offering sublime Meyer lemon, pear and golden honey around a balanced soul and wild ginger-infused intensity. Editors’ Choice." 95 pts – Virginie Boone, Wine Enthusiast, April 2015
The 2012 growing season was close to ideal with temperate and steady temperatures that produced a long, moderate growing season with extended hang time and even ripening.  In the cool reaches of the Sonoma Coast, harvest waited until the beginning to middle two weeks of October.
Winemaking
We press the whole clusters for delicacy. Native-yeast and full native malolactic fermentation take place in barrel, with sur lies bâtonnage.  After aging 18 months in 1/3 new French oak barrels (François Frères), this Chardonnay was fined and settled in tank following the next harvest. It was then bottled without filtration.
Winemaker Notes
The Platt Vineyard is our coolest site, producing wine that is more focused and mineral driven than fruit driven.
Ramey Chardonnay Woolsey Road Vineyard, Russian River Valley 2013 
“One of the finest Russian River Valley Chardonnays I have tasted, Ramey’s 2013 Woolsey Road Vineyard Chardonnay is a truly balanced wine…Highly aromatic and heavenly on the nose, aromas of lemon curd, buttered citrus, pineapple and cold stones mingle with gentle wafts of vanilla….This Chardonnay is zesty and fresh in the mouth, followed by a wave of round textures and richness—there is great contrast, here… rich and creamy palate—though to be sure, the richness is balanced very well by the wine’s fresh acidity…” – Melissa Vogt, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, January 4, 2017
Winemaking
2013 summed up to be a perfect vintage with clear sunny days and cool evenings.  This produced a long, moderate growing season with extended hang time and even ripening, resulting in a full range of flavors while retaining natural acidity. We press whole clusters for phenolic delicacy (low tannins). Native-yeast and full native malolactic fermentations take place in barrel, with sur lies bâtonnage. After eighteen months in 30% new French oak barrels from François Frères, this Chardonnay was bottled without filtration in June 2015.
Winemaker Notes
Coming from special vineyard sites, our Chardonnays show great depth of flavor, length of finish, aromatic complexity, and a fine balance between richness and delicacy.  Typically, the climate is cool and the soil vigor low, producing graceful yet vibrant wines.  This is our second bottling from this new site.
Ramey Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2013 
"Another delicious wine, the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon is a terrific example of the year. Creamy and beautifully layered on the palate, the 2013 captures all of the pedigree of this great vintage in a style that offers a bit more immediacy than many other wines. Best of all, the Cabernet Sauvignon is a remarkable value. Bright red stone fruit, mint, white flowers and tobacco add nuance on the silky yet powerful finish." – 92pts, Antonio Galloni, vinous, February 2016
2013 summed up to be a perfect vintage with clear sunny days and cool evenings.  This produced a long, moderate growing season with extended hang time and even ripening, resulting in silky tannins and a full range of flavors while retaining natural acidity. 
Winemaking
Aging on the fine lees incorporates the oak so that the 18 months spent in 56% new barrels (a mixture of three-year air dried French and American) is barely noticeable. As with all our wines, it was fermented with native yeasts and bacteria and bottled without filtration in June 2015.
Winemaker Notes
Our ninth vintage of this appellation Cabernet is blended from a combination of hillside and valley floor vineyards.  Our style combines the harmony produced by traditional Bordelaise winemaking techniques with the voluptuousness gained from California’s weather, especially in this perfect vintage.
Ramey Cabernet Sauvignon Pedregal Vineyard, Oakville 2013 
"From Oakville, the 2013 Pedregal Vineyard is usually the top Cabernet Sauvignon. A classic nose of cedar wood, forest floor, blackcurrants and loamy earth notes is followed by a wine of stunning intensity, full-bodied potency, beautiful purity and length. There is plenty of tannin, but the extravagant richness seems to cover it up extremely well." 95pts – Robert M. Parker Jr., The Wine Advocate, March 2016
2013 summed up to be a perfect vintage with clear sunny days and cool evenings, unmarked by untimely rain or heat spikes. 
Winemaking
This year's Pedregal is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot co-fermented. Aging the 2013 sur lies with monthly bâtonnage has coated the tannins and smoothly integrated the wood.  We aged this vintage 25 months in new French oak barrels (Taransaud and Darnajou).  Non-filtered.
Winemaker Notes
This is our tenth vintage from this small, outstanding vineyard on the lower slopes of the eastern Oakville hills.  “Pedregal” means a rocky place in Spanish, and that is certainly a distinguishing feature of the site.  During 2008 we agreed to a long-term lease of this vineyard which gives us complete control even through any change in ownership, so this is the fourth vintage we’ve directed farming ourselves.
Ramey Syrah Sonoma Coast 2014 
“From a range of vineyards including Cole and Rodgers Creek, this blend is thick and soft, highlighted in charcuterie, black licorice and tar aromas. Birch and leather add more savory personality, as the nose continues to suggest the aromatic landscape of an Italian deli. It’s cofermented with a small percentage of Viognier.” – 92pts, Virginie Boone, Wine Enthusiast, April 2017
Our eighth vintage of this appellation Syrah, it’s a blend of 43% Alegria Vineyard, 34% Cole Creek Vineyard, 13% Westwood Vineyard and 10% Rodgers Creek Vineyard.
2014 was another classic vintage, if early. A mild winter and spring caused an early bud break followed by consistent temperatures throughout the summer, promoting even ripening. We had ample hang time which in turn yielded intense flavors and a rich texture.
Winemaking
97% Syrah and 3% Viognier, co-fermented. Fermented in tank as 75% destemmed fruit with 25% whole Syrah clusters. This wine went through native-yeast and malolactic fermentations, rested sur lies for 12 months in 41% new French barrels from François Frères, Dempto and Taransaud Beaune.  Our 2014 Sonoma Coast Syrah was bottled without filtration in January, 2016.
Winemaker Notes
Our Syrahs are grown in the cool climate of the Sonoma Coast which offers a style reminiscent of the Northern Rhone regions of Hermitage and Cornas:  aromas and flavors of smoked meat, white pepper, green olive and grapefruit, coupled with a silky texture and savory flavor.
Ramey Syrah Rodger's Creek Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 2013 
“I am a horribly stingy scorer. For a young, non-classic wine to get 18 points out of 20 from me is embarrassingly rare. So today’s wine really is exceptional in my view. It’s not cheap but it is stunning. Fans of northern Rhône wines will recognise the class, gloss, excitement and majestic fragrance of ripe Syrah, all leather and black pepper, but this is not a frail embryonic bud. It’s already a gorgeous wine in full bloom, overlaid with just the right level of ripeness – nothing excessively sweet but enough to make it gulpable already. Think juicy black olives and something particularly savoury – umami, perhaps. As usual with any tasting note on JancisRobinson.com, we try to suggest a drinking window and in this case I think probably 2016 to 2024 – quite an extended one for a California Syrah, but then Ramey’s wines are hugely distinctive.” – Jancis Robinson
2013 summed up to be a perfect vintage with clear sunny days and cool evenings.  This produced a long, moderate growing season with extended hang time and even ripening, resulting in supple tannins and a full range of typical Syrah flavors.
Winemaking
We like the inclusion of whole Syrah clusters in the fermentation and so add 25%; this seems to heighten the “Syrahness.” Other aspects of fermentation and élevage are the same as with all of our winemaking—native yeast and malolactic fermentations. This vintage aged sur lies with monthly bâtonnage and rested 24 months in 100% new French barrels. This wine was bottled without filtration in January 2016.
Winemaker Notes
This unique property is on the western, cooler side of Sonoma Mountain, which provides the savory character that to us defines Syrah.
 
What to Expect:
This event is aimed to host a select gathering of like-minded wine and food lovers who are eager to share wine, stories, laughter, and friendship. We welcome you whether you are an entry-level wine drinker or a well-traveled wine connoisseur. The wines we will sample are carefully hand selected by our premier wine buying team. Please, consider joining us in the midst of a busy week to unwind and take a break from the routines of your normal day to sample some amazing wines while listening to an incredibly well-informed speaker about regions and varietals you may not yet have visited or tasted.