Pomar Junction

I have always been a fan of the whites of the Rhône Valley in France. They are dry but have a lushness of tropical fruit and a slight biscuit or yeast complexity. The central coast of California has grown famous for grape varietals of the Rhône and some have even named themselves Rhône Rangers. Though, I am focusing more on the farmer-rancher traditions that have embraced the Bordeaux styles, I though it interesting to include a Roussanne from Pomar Junction.

This Roussanne has a great textured mouth-feel. I like it with summer vegetables, butter sauces and shellfish. It’s a nice alternative to the ubiquitous Chardonnay. This was grown at a newly acquired vineyard called Creston Ridge so it’s the wineries first year working with Roussanne. Some of the fruit went into a white Rhône-style blend but they were impressed with it on its own, they bottled a single variety that you see here. It was fermented for 6 months in older oak barrels so no heavy oak flavor was introduced. Made entirely from hand-picked, estate-grown grapes from the hillsides of Creston Ridge vineyard with limestone shale rock soils in the El Pomar District AVA. The cooling Templeton Gap breezes moderate summer temperatures and combine with our Linne Calado soils for ideal high quality wine grape growing conditions.

The Merrill Family are the owners and operators of Pomar Junction Winery. Their agricultural heritage and grape growing history dates back at least 8 generations on California’s central coast. A former family ranch still is home to a grape arbor planted in the 19th century. Today, Dana and Marsha Merrill and son, Matthew farm the vineyards, while Matthew’s winemaking is complimented by winemaker, Jim Shumate. After nearly 30 years of growing grapes for many of the finest wineries in California, ranging from ultra-premium small producers to the largest international brands, the Merrill’s decided to produce their own wines. In addition to the family estate, the finest blocks of grapes from Santa Barbara and Monterey Counties are selected from vineyards managed by a sister firm, Mesa Vineyard Management, Inc. All wines produced are exclusively farmed by the Merrill’s who believe that control from planting and pruning through harvest, fermentation and cellaring is critical for success. It also ensures a uniform dedication to sustainability, which led to recent Certification of the SIP program within the Central Coast Vineyard Team. The family believes in community and industry involvement. Dana Merrill was the first San Luis Obispo County Chair of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, a charter member of the pioneering vineyard Sustainability group, the Central Coast Vineyard Team and is a past two term Director of the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance.

2014 Paso Robles Rousanne | Wine Notes 538calclub.com