The Ojai Vineyard
Founder/Winemaker Adam Tolmach will do just about anything to ensure that the fruit he uses will be at its best for the kind of elegant, subtle wines he seeks to produce. Adam began his winery in 1983, and since then, his quest has been to combine the balance and finesse of European-style wines with the exuberant fruit from coastal southern California vineyards.
“Barbera is a uniquely terrific grape for warm growing regions, like where our Rich Vineyard Barbera grows in sunny Upper Ojai,” says Adam. “It’s trellised with a VSP setup with a high canopy, just how we like, allowing the fruit to be well-shaded throughout our warm summers. Each year, it’s somewhat worrisome how late the berries begin to develop color. But sure enough, the vines put it all in at the end and we wind up with a powerfully flavored expression of Barbera with all the zippiness one hopes for with this grape.
Most grape varieties have winemakers nervous about losing too much acidity near harvest, which can make for dull wines. With Barbera it’s just the opposite, you wait and wait for the pH to rise into a realm where the wine won’t tear the enamel off your teeth! We pick at reasonable sugars and lean on the utility of whole clusters to temper the acidity. Stems contain potassium which decreases acidity, so with whole-cluster fermentation we can bridle the raciness of this high acid red. We also love how that candied carbonic lift augments this varietal’s fruity character, while botanical aromatics from the stems complicate the fruit. Here you have a boldly flavored red wine that has all the thrust and zestiness of a white wine.”
The fabulous wines we featured:
2018 John Sebastiano Vineyard, San Soufre Ajoute Grenache
- 92-93 Points, Vinous: “The pure intensity of the fruit is just remarkable.”
- Pairs with: Fiery al pastor (grilled pork tacos), well smoked brisket.
- Enjoy now or hold up to 5 years.
Tasting Notes: The flavor impact is powerful but creamy, rounded, and it paves the way for plush purply waves of cassis and mulberry, then a smoky crackle of pepper, roasted herbs, and allspice.
2019 Rich Vineyard, Ventura County Barbera
- 92 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
- Pair with: Braised short ribs, red mole sauce, or Époisses cheese.
- Enjoy now or hold up to 20 years.
Tasting Notes: Its fragrance shows a rich blast of fruitiness — lots of sour cherry, pomegranate, and berries — all laced up with delicate savory herbs and an earthy smidge of cocoa. The palate is lush with red plums, blood orange and sour cherry, but there’s a sweetness that swaddles the racy flavors. It’s explosive and refreshingly juicy all at once. As it tapers out, you’ll find a fine mesh of stemmy spice and herbs that lends some fine grip and earthy savor.
Winemaker's Notes
2018 John Sebastiano Vineyard, San Soufre Ajoute Grenache: Fruit for this wine was grown on steep southwest-facing slopes at John Sebastiano Vineyard in Santa Barbara County. This site features densely planted rows on a peak rising from the eastern outskirts of Sta. Rita Hills. The relative elevation makes for a fierce raking by cold Pacific winds, so the fruit ripens late and is consistently intriguing with spicy and savory earth notes, and the tannins are consistently powdery fine.
2019 Rich Vineyard, Ventura County Barbera: Rich Vineyard in the Upper Ojai Valley supplied the fruit. Our block of Barbera is just an acre of clone 6 that is planted on flat Mocho soil, and alluvial soil type that is very well-drained. The wine fermented in open-top containers with 75% whole clusters, then aged for 18 months in neutral French oak.
Ventura County
Adam and Helen Tolmach
Adam Tolmach