A Tribute to Grace - Grenache Santa Barbara County 2022 750ml (13.9% ABV)
WINE CLUB SELECTION - FEB 2023
Angela Osborne, the driving force behind A Tribute To Grace Wine Company, is a passionate winemaker born in New Zealand. Her journey is dedicated to crafting authentic expressions of Grenache. Having moved to California in 2006, Angela was driven by a dream to create exceptional Grenache wines, a pursuit made challenging by the cooler climate of her homeland. The quest for the perfect terroir took her on a global odyssey, exploring regions from northern Spain and southern France to southern Australia. It was the abundant sunshine and entrepreneurial spirit of California that ultimately beckoned her.
In 2007, Angela sourced her first Grenache fruit from the Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard, a high-desert vineyard perched above the Pacific Ocean, located 33 miles inland. This vineyard offered the ideal blend of heat and light needed to ripen this sun-loving grape, setting the stage for the creation of truly remarkable wines.
The inspiration for the label design: The Queen Anne’s Lace motif, inspired by a dried flower found in a Dublin vintage market, was chosen for its symbolism of simplicity, femininity, and the enduring circle of grace. This design has graced each bottle of A Tribute To Grace Wine Company since 2007, adding an extra layer of elegance to Angela Osborne’s heartfelt tribute to her Grandmother Grace and her deep connection to Grenache.
The Santa Barbara County Grenache was inspired by Fonsalette from Chateau Rayas. The wine represents two very different microclimates. The first vineyard is the Highlands with 3200 feet elevation. The second vineyard is Curtis which is tucked away in Foxen Canyon.
1,158 cases produced
2022 gave us the most perfect growing season for gorgeously lignified stems. Whilst the single vineyards to follow will bring that expression to a micro-level, our SBC blend conveys 69% wholecluster love (our highest percentage yet). Combining five clones planted in seven blocks from four vineyards, this is one dynamically-layered expression of Santa Barbara County love. Representing vastly different expressions within this climate, harvested over a six week period: the Highlands with her 3200 feet elevation extremity and wide open skies, the Vie Caprice vineyard with 5’ x 4’ spacing amidst Santa Ynez horse country, an organically farmed haven in Ballard Canyon, and our favourite neighbour: Thompson Vineyard in our home town of Los Alamos.
very pale, Pinot Noir-esque color, pretty bouquet, medium bodied, wild strawberry, black doris plum, garrigue, violets, and bindi olives, hints of tobacco and cinnamon, elegance and purity, sleek yet supple, seamless, balanced, ethereal
region: Santa Barbara County, CA, USA
varietal: Grenache
style: red
farming/cellar: practicing biodynamic, 69% whole-cluster, Aged 11 months in neutral French barrique & puncheon, Racked once and bottled under an Aries moon
pairing: