2015 Château Duplantier - Rideau Vineyard

Crushed blackberry, wild sage, plum flesh. Bruised strawberry, brisket char, raspberry glaze. Fresh rosemary and thyme, coarse salt and star anise. Rich fruit drives the attack, pulsing with ripe blueberry, kirsch, and melted licorice atop dried violets and smokey mesquite. Fresh fig meets poppy seed with a dusting of nutmeg and baked cinnamon. Bold yet balanced and sporting a bit of a wild streak. This 2015 Château Duplantier by Rideau Vineyard is a wonderful Southern Rhone-style blend from Santa Barbara.

Rhone blends come in a variety of shapes and sizes and seem to be growing in popularity across California. This bottling, crafted by Rideau Vineyard using a blend of fruit from their estate vineyard in the Los Olivos District of Santa Barbara County, is a delicious take on the genre. It is composed of 36% Syrah, 24% Mourvedre, 20% Grenache, and 20% Petite Sirah, and is quite polished and cohesive. This wine is definitely not shy - it is full bodied with medium tannin - yet its medium plus acidity keeps things fresh. Rideau Vineyard's estate sits in a perfectly situated pocket that is warm enough to grow these slow-ripening black skinned grapes, but sees extremely cool nights which helps maintain an ever important acid streak. We've loved everything we've tried from these guys and this bottle is no different.