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Dom Pérignon invented sparkling wine as we know it way back in 1693. In 2005, just over 300 years later, Norm Yost brought sparkling wine production to Santa Barbara County. Flying Goat Cellars was founded in the year 2000 as an outlet for Norm to make Pinot Noir from the best vineyard sites in Santa Barbara, but in 2005 inspiration struck. Goat Bubbles, the sparkling wing of Flying Goat Cellars, was officially launched a few years later with the release of a special 2005 Sparkling Rosé. This rosé was wildly popular and prompted an immediate increase in production. Today Goat Bubbles makes just over 1000 cases of sparkling wine each year and has firmly established its reputation as one of greatest and most inimitable producers of Santa Barbara bubbly.
Norm was no stranger to bubbles when he started Flying Goat - having worked on multiple sparkling programs during his time working as a winemaker in Northern California - and from Goat Bubbles' first vintage he was able to craft some extremely complex and compelling sparkling wine. His approach is meticulous and thorough; and since the beginning every bottle of Goat Bubbles has been produced completely by hand in methode champenoise by Norm himself with help from a handful of dedicated employees. Norm is a self-described acid-head, and stylistically his sparkling wines project brilliant acidity on par with some of the best examples from Champagne. We have long been fans of Norm's expertly-crafted wines, so we recently reached out to him to connect and learn more about his remarkable operation.
We were able to meet up with Norm at the Flying Goat tasting room in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto to taste through some Goat Bubbles and learn more about how this special project came to be. Norm poured us through a flight of his current releases as we talked, which included five unique sparkling wines. Our conversation started from the very beginning of Norm's wine journey and continued all the way through to the present and future of Flying Goat and Goat Bubbles.
Like many famous winemakers Norm's vinous journey began at UC Davis - a school widely known as the Harvard of wine. Curiously however, Norm did not study anything wine-related there. He fell into the trade accidentally after taking a job at a winery at the suggestion of his roommate, and he quickly realized he preferred it to the work he'd be doing with his environmental studies degree. Norm worked at various prestigious Napa, Sonoma, and Oregon producers until he eventually moved down to Santa Barbara to pursue new opportunities. He started Fly Goat Cellars in 2000 and the rest is history.
The first wine Norm poured us as we chatted was a unique Crémant. Crafted from 100% Pinot Blanc sourced from the Sierra Madre vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley, this wine is an ode to the sparkling wines of Alsace. It was deliciously fruity and clean, but with tense underlying acidity more reminiscent of old-world bubbles than California sparkling. We then moved on to a series of Champagne-inspired bubblies, including a Brut Cuvee, Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noir, and Rosé.
As Norm guided us through each wine we could not help but to be blown away by what we were experiencing. The poise and structure of his sparklers were impressive, and each possessed intensely focused energy and verve. Fruit was present in each but not overpowering and integrated marvelously with bready tones and subtle minerality. Powerful acidity coursed through each offering, and while distinguishably different than the sparkling wines of Champagne we could not help but feel similar intensity. We thoroughly enjoyed every wine in the lineup yet Norm's Blanc de Blancs, crafted from 100% Chardonnay and again sourced from the Sierra Madre Vineyard, was our unanimous favorite of the flight. Its lean citrus and apple focused attack combined with pronounced effervescence to create a spectacular experience, and we could not get enough of the zesty mouthfeel.
We knew coming in that Norm's sparkling wines were great, but we were still curious about how he achieved such greatness. As we picked his brain Norm explained that his approach to creating world-class sparkling wine starts significantly earlier in the winemaking process than most other new-world producers. First and foremost, he explained it is important to start with the correct ingredients. Norm is intentional with which fruit he selects to use for his sparkling program, and he prefers specific grape varieties and clones that ripen more completely with higher acidity at lower sugar levels. He specifically seeks out Champagne clones when possible to ensure his grapes express desirable characteristics. Once the fruit is selected Norm monitors it very carefully during the growing season, and often harvests at ripeness levels as low as 19-20 brix. Once hand harvesting is complete the fruit is again hand sorted and then pressed. The sparkling wines of Goat Bubbles are created using primarily the best juice from the first pressing, and only in certain instances will wine from the second pressing be blended back in.
Depending on the wine he is making Norm's vinification techniques do differ, but he prefers to allow substantial lees contact when applicable after vinification to add texture and depth to certain wines. Once in bottle Norm likes to age most of his offerings for 2 years en tirage - or sitting on the dead yeast known as lees - which adds complex yeasty brioche tones common in Champagne. Norm explained to us that he would like to move to aging his wines on their lees in bottle for 3 years like they do in Champagne, but currently that is not economically viable for the operation. Lastly, Norm typically finishes his wines with a Brut dosage, which adds just a dash of sweetness and prevents them from being searingly and oppressively dry.
Santa Barbara possesses arguably the most appropriate terroir in the United States for sparkling wine production, and thanks to the intentionality of Norm Yost the time-honored techniques of Champagne have arrived in here as well. While Goat Bubbles was the first full-fledged sparkling wine program in Santa Barbara County the popularity of the genre has popped-off, and today there are close to 50 producers in the region making sparkling wine. Norm is a wonderful person and a true pioneer, and we are glad to have gotten the opportunity to learn all about Goat Bubbles and the part it played in bringing sparkling wine production to a new frontier. Make sure to stop by the Flying Goat tasting room next time you are in Lompoc to experience some of the best sparkling wine made this side of the Atlantic.