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Tucked neatly into a north facing slope in the foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains the El Jabali Vineyard stands as one of the most influential vineyard sites in Santa Barbara's Santa Rita Hills. It was first planted by Santa Barbara wine pioneer Richard Sanford in 1983 and shortly thereafter would become the first certified organic vineyard in the county. Its name "El Jabali" is a tribute to the wild boars that still roam this secluded and mountainous 628 acre property. Today this bucolic estate has become the estate vineyard of Alma Rosa Winery, and almost 40 years after it was first established it is still producing some absolutely spectacular wine.
We had the opportunity to visit El Jabali recently and exploring this amazing site completely exceeded our admittedly high expectations. As soon we pulled up to the property's gorgeous ranch house - where Alma Rosa's wine club events and special tastings are held - we were greeted with a welcome pour of Alma Rosa's 2015 Brut Cuvee. This zero-dosage Pinot Noir based sparkling wine immediately caught our attention and held it with a firm unrelenting grip. Packed with pure and lovely fruit, beautiful bready autolytic character, and deeply pristine minerality this Méthode Champenoise sparkler was absolutely riveting. We've been well aware of the tremendous potential for bubbly in Santa Barbara for quite some time, but this wine still managed to surprise us with its unabated complexity and cut. If we weren't about to head up into the vineyard to get dirty between the vines we might never have pulled ourselves away from our glasses, but alas the vineyard was calling.
We worked our way up to the crest of the El Jabali Vineyard with the help of our guide Lindsay and could immediately see why this site has long produced such wonderful fruit. Nestled unassumingly between old-growth oak trees and various native shrubs these 44 acres of vineyards rest in a uniquely sheltered position in the foothills of the mountain, which protects vines ever-so-slightly from the region's harsh coastal winds. El Jabali's location near the eastern end of the Santa Rita Hills - the end furthest from the funnel of cold ocean air - means it sees slightly less fog and slightly more sunshine than most of the appellation, which allows fruit grown here to ripen consistently. Its gentle north-facing slope also serves to protect it from the most intense bits of afternoon sunshine that can speed up ripening in vineyards with southern exposure. Soils at El Jabali are primarily infertile sandy clay loam with some diatomaceous shale and small rock content mixed in. This soil causes vines to struggle for nutrients and keeps temperatures slightly cooler than sandier and rockier sites. We found nearly everything about the El Jabali Vineyard to be picture perfect and it quickly became obvious why we had made the journey out to this secluded hillside.
The El Jabali Vineyard contains near ideal characteristics for high quality wine production and thankfully the winemaking team at Alma Rosa Winery allows the captivating personality of this property to shine brightly. After spending time traversing the vineyard we moved our way back down to the ranch house to hear about the history of Alma Rosa and taste more of their delicious wine. We learned that while El Jabali was first planted to vines in 1983 it was actually originally the property of Sanford Winery. When Richard Sanford sold Sanford Winery to the Terlato's in the early 2000's he excluded El Jabali from the deal to keep it for himself, and he would go on to found Alma Rosa Winery in 2005 as a way to continue making wine from this special site. Alma Rosa was eventually purchased from Richard Sanford by Bob and Barb Zorich in 2013, however Richard has stayed heavily involved as an ambassador for the brand ever since.
As she talked us through the history of Alma Rosa Winery Lindsay also tasted us through their current lineup of wine. We were poured a Chardonnay, a Rosé, a Grenache, and two unique Pinot Noirs. The Chardonnay was a favorite of ours with its delicious crispness and minerality; it was wonderfully lean and perfectly in balance with no signs of excess ripeness or oak. The El Jabali Vineyard Pinot Noir was another major standout that expressed a dark and brooding fruit profile along with a magnificent ethereal spice character. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the tasting was Alma Rosa's Grenache that they source from a neighboring vineyard. We found it to be impressively elegant and aromatic with an almost Pinot-like feel, bursting with sage and herbal notes that melded seamlessly with fresh and crunchy red fruit. We genuinely enjoyed every wine in the Alma Rosa lineup and would easily rank the quality of their offerings on par with the top producers in the region.
Our visit to Alma Rosa Winery and the beautiful El Jabali Vineyard impressed us unequivocally. El Jabali is an extraordinary site that is both historic and revolutionary, and we found the wines coming from this property to be simply exceptional. Santa Barbara County remains one of the most unique and dynamic wine growing regions in the entire world and producers like Alma Rosa play a major part in its continued success. Alma Rosa is a wonderful operation led by passionate and committed individuals and we are thrilled at the opportunity to share their story.