A Trip to the Ultra-Cool California Coast: A Buyer’s Guide to Cool-Climate Wines
One of the biggest misunderstandings about domestic wine—California wine especially—is that all the wines are big and fruity because California is a sunny, hot place to grow grapes. I hear time and again that people prefer “Old World” wines because California is too hot and the wines are all too big and high in alcohol. Now, apologies in advance if that’s your take on things, but it’s just plain wrong.
Sure, there are warm regions in California, just like there are in most other grape-growing countries. However, coastal California is actually one of the coolest, most moderate growing regions anywhere on the planet, thanks to its immediate proximity to the cold Pacific Ocean. Everyone knows the mythical Mark Twain quote, “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.” Well, unlike the origin of that quote, there is plenty of proof in the climate data showing just how cool the growing regions immediately along California’s coast really are. When you look at that data, it’s quite striking how cool the growing season is when compared to European regions historically considered cool-climate. Take, for example, Bodega Bay, just minutes from vineyard sources for producers such as Cobb, Occidental, RAEN, and Anthill.
As you can see, in the prime growing months of May through September, this heavily ocean-influenced part of California is significantly cooler—by more than 10°F—than Beaune. The only reason grapes can successfully ripen in this ultra-cool climate is that, in coastal California, the growing season isn’t typically impacted by spring frost events or large-scale fall rain. The extended hangtime allows for slow, gradual ripening. In Burgundy, by contrast, the fruit needs to ripen along a faster curve, as the growing season is shorter and warmer, with much higher risks of frost and rain at either end of the season.
All of this is simply to say that I truly believe some of the most exciting, genuinely cool-climate wines in the world are being made along the coast of California. We’re extremely fortunate to have the moderating effect of the Pacific Ocean combined with generally stable weather conditions and minimal rain well into fall.
California Chardonnay
It’s a bit of a running joke here at K&L that the stereotypical Cali Chard is still perceived to be a big, buttery, round, heavily oak-influenced wine. However, beyond a few outliers, the vast majority of California Chardonnay on our shelves is much more vibrant, fresh, and focused, with only modest oak influence and plenty of crisp acidity. That’s how I like my Chardonnay, and that’s the way the trend in the industry has been going for quite some time.
Don’t panic if you like big, rich, oaky Chardonnay—I’ll always make sure those wines are available too—but by and large, the Chardonnays being produced in California today can look the raciest of white Burgundy squarely in the eye without flinching. Here are a few of my favorites to check out:
2023 Ernest Sonoma Coast Chardonnay $19.95 (Elsewhere $30) 95JS 94DC By the time this newsletter hits your inbox, I hope we still have enough of this incredible deal for you to take advantage of. As you may have seen in one of our recent Insider’s Advantage offers, Ernest Winery is closing its doors this year. We were able to secure positions on several of their wines at massively discounted prices, making them absolute no-brainers.
This wine comes from a single vineyard called Ocean View Vineyard, on the western edge of Green Valley/West Sonoma Coast. Classic Ernest: fresh, vibrant, full of zesty mineral tones, and brimming with energy. Native yeast fermented and matured largely in neutral French oak, this is very much in a Chablis-esque style, with great focus and saline minerality. Coming in at just 12% ABV, this racy Chardonnay has lifted white flowers, crunchy orchard fruit, quince, Golden Delicious apple, citrus oil, raw hazelnut, chalky minerals, and a subtle toasted grain / pie crust note on the finish. Really focused and refreshing, and a spectacular value at our deeply discounted price. We bought everything we could—don’t miss it!
Cobb Vineyard looking out to Bodega Bay.
2023 Cobb Sonoma Coast Chardonnay $29.95 (Elsewhere $45) I loved the introduction of this wine from Ross Cobb because it allows people to get a taste of his incredible winemaking talent at a very reasonable price. Sharing much of the character of his more expensive single-vineyard bottlings, this Chardonnay shows exactly what the far West Sonoma Coast can do with the variety. Power and precision personified.
The wine is linear and focused, but with great depth of flavor and phenolic tension. Our sales team has been putting this in the hands of as many customers as they can since tasting it a few months back, and it’s quickly becoming a best-seller at this razor-sharp price.
2023 Alma Rosa Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay $29.95 (Elsewhere $40) 95JS It’s been some time since we’ve had Alma Rosa’s wines on our shelves consistently, but at a recent tasting in SoCal, I was thoroughly impressed by the entire lineup, not least by this excellent Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay. For me, this wine perfectly captures that “refrigerated sunshine” that Sta. Rita Hills is so known for.
The wine has wonderful golden orchard fruit, baked apple, white peach, and even a little pineapple, but also plenty of chalky mineral, Buddha’s hand zest, and floral elements to keep everything lifted and fresh. Captivating wine and very well priced given the pedigree here.
2023 I. Brand & Family “Escolle Vineyard” Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay $29.95 (Elsewhere $40) 97JD 94DC I’m thrilled to see this wine getting the huge press it deserves. We’re committed fans of Ian Brand here at K&L and carry a broad range of his wines 24/7. When this wine picked up a nice 94-point score from Decanter, I grabbed a few extra cases and opened the wine for the team. Imagine my delight, then, when a few weeks later a monster 97-point score dropped from Jeb Dunnuck!
I love it when old favorites come good, and this wine is more than deserving. Quite a serious, powerful wine from Ian, the focused, laser-like fruit from this cold, windswept vineyard is given a little more oomph and structure with aging in 50% new, large-format French oak puncheons. The time in barrel seems to have given the wine room to expand and spread its wings. Dare I say Meursault-like? Powerful yet focused, floral but dense and coiled. Fascinating now, but also a wine I think will really benefit from further time in bottle, much like great white Burgundy.
2023 Anthill Farms “Campbell Ranch” Sonoma Coast Chardonnay $29.95 (Elsewhere $50) 95VN Anthony Filiberti, the winemaker at Anthill Farms, seems drawn to the outer limits of coastal California like a moth to a flame. Campbell Ranch sits on the northwest Sonoma Coast in the town of Annapolis. Just two miles from the ocean, and sitting at only 750 feet elevation, this vineyard still sees persistent fog throughout the growing season.
The grapes here really exemplify the argument I made earlier about the sheer marginality of growing grapes on the frigid edge of viability. However, thanks to the extended growing season, nerves of steel, and naturally low-vigor sandstone soils, this wine is an energetic beauty. Full of nervous energy, saline minerals, and white flowers. The 95-point tasting note from Vinous sums this wine up well: “West Sonoma Coast in a glass.”
California Pinot Noir
Once again, the stereotype of big, 15% ABV cherry bombs still somehow persists around California Pinot Noir, despite these types of wines becoming increasingly hard to find, even if you explicitly go looking for them. Some folks think they need to chase the elusive magic of great red Burgundy to find elegant, complex Pinot Noir. But that’s simply not the case.
There is so much fantastic Pinot Noir grown on the California coast right now that it’s kind of an embarrassment of riches, especially after several excellent vintages in quick succession. The wines are elegant, fresh, food-friendly, and oftentimes remarkably affordable given the quality. Here are a few to consider:
Assiduous, Lilo Vineyard.
2024 Assiduous “Lilo Vineyard” Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir $29.95 93JD A personal favorite, and one of the more naturally beautiful vineyards you’ll ever come across. Lilo Vineyard is a tiny two-acre site deep in the coastal redwoods above the town of Aptos. The vineyard has a stunning ocean view right across Monterey Bay, all the way down to the Big Sur Mountains on a clear day. The proximity to the ocean, shading from the stands of redwoods, and the pervasive aromatic influence of the coastal forest all combine to make this a beautiful and distinctive bottle of wine.
Winemaker Keegan Mayo personally farmed this vineyard for several years and has a deep connection with it. After half of the vineyard was abandoned by one of the owners, Lilo has now become a monopole for Assiduous, with Keegan taking all the fruit. That said, there are still only a few hundred cases of this wonderful wine made.
Incredible soaring aromatics: cool, crushed red berries, a dew-soaked rose garden, freshly cut strawberries. So pure and pristine. Wild berry fruit combines with savory forest floor, moss, bramble leaf, and baking spices on the palate. A truly beguiling wine with beautiful purity.
2024 RAEN “Royal St. Robert Cuvée” Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir $73.95 99JS The team at RAEN is absolutely all-in on the West Sonoma Coast, sourcing from several vineyards in the Bodega, Occidental, Freestone, and Fort Ross areas. All sites are heavily influenced by the Pacific and have sandy Goldridge soils. The last several releases from RAEN have been some of the most critically acclaimed wines from the region, and for very good reason.
The 2024 Royal St. Robert builds on that reputation and, in my humble opinion, delivers the most accessible, downright delicious-from-the-first-pour edition of this wine yet. The ultra-cool climate and use of 100% whole clusters have, in years gone by, given this wine a slightly brooding, almost reductive edge when young. The 2024 is pure deliciousness from the get-go. This team, led by owners Carlo and Dante Mondavi, with maestro Melanie McIntyre crafting the wines in the cellar, continues to raise the bar for what is possible in this region.
2021 Cobb “Doc’s Ranch Vineyard” Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir $69.95 (Elsewhere $90) 97DC 96JD 95WE 94WA 94VN No surprise that another one of Cobb’s wines made this list. I can think of few other producers that so clearly illustrate the truly world-class potential of wines grown on the California coast. Cobb’s Coastlands Vineyard and the immediately adjacent Doc’s Ranch Vineyard would certainly be Grand Cru sites if the region were ever to get a European-like classification.
Planted in 1999, Doc’s Ranch looks south directly onto the harbor of Bodega Bay, just a few miles away. Constantly affected by fog and cooling winds, this site produces minuscule yields of intensely flavored fruit. Fermented with 50% whole cluster, this wine shows pristine red berries, coastal redwood grove, bramble, winter spice, subtle truffle hints, and alpine herbs. So fine and elegant, but also with lots of coiled power and aging potential for decades of enjoyment.
Winemaker Matt Dees of the Hilt, the Paring, and Jonata.
2023 The Hilt “Radian Vineyard” Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir $94.95 97-99JD 98JS 97WA 96VN The Hilt’s Radian Vineyard has quickly gained a reputation as one of the modern Grand Crus of the Sta. Rita Hills. This vineyard sits in the hills at the southwestern corner of the AVA, bearing the full brunt of the prevailing winds coming off the Pacific. The soils here are composed of diatomaceous earth, calcareous clay, and fractured chert or flint. A sister property of Jonata, under the same ownership as Screaming Eagle in Napa Valley, everything at The Hilt is done with a single-minded focus on quality.
Winemaker Matt Dees is widely considered one of the most talented winemakers of his generation, and yet he is one of the most personable, humble guys you could ever meet. The wines do the talking at The Hilt, and boy does this one have something to say.
There is such intensity and concentration here, but in such a refined and focused wine. That, I think, is the common thread across many of these extreme coastal California wines: intensity without excess; focused, linear power; line and length on the palate rather than upfront breadth. The 2023 Radian is quite dark-fruited, with loganberry, violets, black raspberry, mincemeat—the British kind—winter spices, and struck-flint mineral. Delicious now, but also built for the long haul, so hide some away in your cellar.