Today’s Story: Broc Cellars
Broc Cellars, located in Berkeley, California, is a boutique winery established by winemaker and owner Chris Brockway. Though Chris purchases the fruit for his wines, he ensures that all of it comes from sustainably or organically farmed vineyards (often managed by him) where the use of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers is eschewed. In crafting his wines, he utilizes spontaneous fermentation where only natives yeasts and bacteria reign supreme without any additives. Chris doesn’t add any nutrients, enzymes, or tannins to his wines and adds zero to minimal SO2 depending on the wine. For his varieties that range from Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay to Nero d’Avola and Valdiguié, Chris sources fruit from Mendocino, Sonoma, and Solano counties as well as Alexander Valley and beyond.
Today’s Wine: 2018 Got Grapes
100% Valdiguié; 11.5% ABV
The 2018 Got Grapes is pale purple in color and moderately opaque. I simply let this open in the glass with the nose showcasing aromas of cranberry, dried raspberry, red and purple florals, slight barnyard, wet sand, steel cut oats, eucalyptus, and rocky mineral. Once on the palate, this delicious wine displays notes of crunchy red raspberry, strawberry, pomegranate, rocky soil, stemmy underbrush, tobacco leaf, black pepper, and mineral. This is light- to medium-bodied with gorgeous medium (+) acidity, medium (-) tannins, and a medium (+) length finish. This Valdiguié is sourced from two dry farmed vineyards in Mendocino County, and the fruit is destemmed and fermented on the skins before being pressed into tanks to complete fermentation and aged for 6 months in neutral French oak barrels. 400 cases produced.
Price: $27 direct from winery (I snagged it for $24). This is not a wine for every palate but it is not too far out there by any means for those who want to explore a naturally-made wine. For me, I thought this was absolutely fantastic and for its price not only of supreme quality and delicious but certainly fun. Pair this with roasted chicken, grilled salmon, or charcuterie and hard cheeses.
JB's Wine Talk 