The Coastview Vineyard which was featured by several wineries at the Califermentation tasting.

So many things we enjoy, even love, are polarizing. Take baseball. Some people love the Yankees, or the Dodgers. Other folks love to hate both. And a lot of Americans can’t stand baseball period. It’s all about one’s upbringing, points of reference and, perhaps, brain chemistry. Particular TV shows and musicians draw strong reactions. So did books, back when more people read them.

Wine, which can be so relaxing and so good at bringing people together, also infuriates and divides. Old World vs. New World. Opulent vs. light—in just the past few days there was a big Wine Advocate tasting in Napa of high-points wines and in San Francisco the final tasting by In Pursuit of Balance, a group founded to provide a counterpoint to Wine Advocate’s palate. And there was also the two-day Califermentation tasting in San Francisco.

Califermentation, a “wine fair showcasing California’s natural winemakers,” highlighted about 46 producers over two days. There were fledgling wineries and some which go back decades. There were wines that anyone would recognize and others nobody but the winemaker even dreamed of. In SOMA, the tasting venue was packed to the rafters with enthusiastic tasters. Somewhere, Robert Parker’s hair stood on end at the least thought of such an event.

I have mixed feelings about natural wines. Some of the best wines I ever tasted were natural. And some of the worst. I don’t have “religious” views on natural wine. I do like the idea of minimizing chemicals in the vineyard and additives in the tank. But I also understand that the “teas” used in biodynamic vineyards are essentially chemicals produced “naturally” on site and that there are benefits to sulfites.

In the end, I like wine that is balanced and delicious and evocative and which I can drink without fatigue. There are many regions and varieties and production methods capable of such wines. The process may be interesting, be a good story, but the wine has to speak for itself. It needs to say “drink me.”

As a reviewer, I try to judge wines based on standard criteria and by the producers intent. Even a wine I don’t personally enjoy may get great scores if it hits the marks and is an excellent example of that particular style of wine.

Natural wine pushes boundaries, just as modern movements did for critics of art. The reference points are different. Relative to conventional profiles, the product can be abstract. That neither guarantees nor prohibits greatness. It does make the critic’s job harder though. (Coincidentally, as I write this, I just noticed a new column article from Matt Kramer touching on the same thing.)

Because of range of personalities in these wines, regardless of reviews, I recommend you try a glass before you buy a bottle, or at least buy a bottle before you buy three.

Which leads back to Califermentation. It was an interesting, sometimes eye-opening tasting full of wines that I loved and full of wines I never want to taste again. I have huge respect for each of the winemakers; their projects are personal expressions which they take very seriously and on which they work very hard. I also applaud the efforts of Vinguard, Winelandia and others who put the whole thing together. And, if you have any interest at all, seek out the next tasting or ones similar.

The criteria for wines included in this Califermentation were:

• No (artificial) chemicals in the vineyard. The fruit must be organically farmed.
• Native yeast fermentation only.
• No additions except sulfites and sulfites only to 50 ppm. So, no enzymes, nutrients or watering back.

There was a lot of wine and not enough time for me to taste, let alone write detailed notes on, every one.  Below are some of the wines that tickled my fancy. Please don’t take non-inclusion on this list as an indication that the wine or winery isn’t good.

Amplify Wines “Duke & Ella” White Table Wine 2015 ($22) is a blend of Viognier and Muscat from Santa Barbara County. It’s light with long-lasting attractive notes of honeysuckle, under-ripe stone fruit and mineral. It’s unfined and unfiltered, so expect some haziness.

Clos Saron stunned me with their $75 magnum of 1995(!) “Once Upon a Time Riesling” from the Renaissance Vineyard in the Sierra Foothills. While Riesling is well-known for aging, “natural wines” are not. Made with 45 ppm of sulfites, this wine is fabulous and has years ahead of it. It’s a dry Riesling aromas and very long flavors of mineral, petrol, white flowers, honey and lime.

Forlorn Hope Wines‘ Chenin Blanc Rorick Vineyard Calaveras County 2015 ($32) is a fresh, chalky textured wine of green apple and lemon. It’s good now and should develop well for at least four years.

J. Brix Wines La Belle Reveuse Syrah, Alamo Creek Vineyard San Luis Obispo County ($29) has a strong core of black olive plus notes dark plum, chocolate and juniper. Juicy palate.

Lo-Fi Wines‘ Cabernet Franc Santa Barbara County 2015 ($26) is made from organically farmed vines near Solvang. Semi-carbonic fermentation, as one typically finds in Beaujolais, brings out bright, black raspberry and mulberry to complement the variety’s typically leafy notes. There’s also cocoa nib on the medium-bodied, chalky palate.

Los Pilares from from San Diego County brought three wines surprised me in a very positive way. My favorite among them was the medium-bodied 2013 Grenache-Carignan ($21) which was pretty, refreshing and very long with flavors of chocolate, ripe blackberry and tart black cherry.

Sometimes, natural winemakers tendency toward skin contact in whites and low sulfite usage in general leads their varietal wines to taste and feel significantly different from “regular” wines from the same grape. Not so the Verdad Wine Cellars Albarino Sawyer-Lindquist Vineyard Edna Valley 2015 ($24). Its juicy with medium+ body and yummy flavors of under-ripe stone fruit and mineral would be easy to peg in a blind-tasting and, more importantly, go well with that fish dinner you’re contemplating.

Vesper Vineyards “Alacala” Highland Hills Vineyard, Ramona Valley 2013 ($29) is a soft, pretty blend of Marsanne and Roussanne. Though all the way down in San Diego County, the vineyard is at 1,400 feet and just 20 miles from the ocean. That leads to restraint in the varietally typical notes of dried white flowers, honey and marzipan.

The Black Trumpet Syrah “Blue Wax” Charles Heintz Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 2015 ($30) is medium-bodied with kalamata olive, black plum and a lengthy, mouthwatering finish.

Hazy gold from three weeks of skin contact, the Enfield Wine Co. Chardonnay Heron Lake Vineyard, Wild Horse Valley  2103 ($36) has medium+ body in the mouth with fine, soft texture. The aromas and flavors are dried peaches and apples with white flowers.

Halcon Vineyards Pinot Noir Wentzel Vineyard Anderson Valley 2014 ($NA) is a good, balanced representation of the area with a core of dark red fruit.

The Hobo Wine Co./Folk Machine “The Small Hours” Pinot Noir Vecino Vineyard, Potter Valley 2015 ($28) is a very pretty, medium-bodied wine with soft, red fruit, garrigue and stemmy-floral spice. Excellent value for Pinot.

The Ser Winery Chardonnay Coastview Vineyard, Monterey County 2015 ($28) is effortlessly elegant with lovely texture and flavors of yellow apple, bread, baking spice and lemon. Medium+ body. The vineyard lies at 2,300 feet in the Gabilan Mountains.

Unturned Stone Productions “Spider Chase” Red Wine Fort Ross-Seaview 2013 ($32) is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec is elegant and medium-bodied with fine, chalky tannins and notes of pipe tobacco, drying leaves and black currant. The finish is generous and juicy.

The Vinca Minor Cabernet Sauvignon Bates Ranch Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains 2015 ($45) is lovely, medium-bodied wine with fine, soft, chalky texture and flavors of black cherry, dry herb and dark spice.

I have not mentioned Harrington Wines or Neighborhood Vineyard above, because I just covered them in my New Mission Winemakers article. Good stuff, check ’em out!

Copyright Fred Swan 2016. All rights reserved.