Beauregard's Blog

In The Vineyard with Ryan Beauregard - A Coast Grade Vineyard Exclusive

Harvest is only a few weeks away and Ryan, our winemaker extraordinaire, is gearing up.  Today we walked off the winery property to Coast Grade Vineyard next door.  Coast Grade is our newest estate vineyard planted in 2008 with four clones of Pinot Noir.  2013 will be the second vintage of grapes we will have harvested from these vines.  Ryan is on a harvest preparation mission to collect sample clusters from each of the 4 blocks in the vineyard.

As we reach the vineyard gate Ryan spots a small bobcat running across the field at Coast Grade. It is too fast to catch a photo and we continue on. We begin our sampling in the top eastern corner of the vineyard along the rows of Pinot Noir, Pommard clone.  Ryan explains that we need to draw an imaginary graph and go through to select a fair sample of clusters throughout this grid.  “I do whole cluster samples, this gives a more accurate reading of the sugar and pH levels.”

The clusters have gone through vérasion and are now covered in netting to keep the birds out, but lucky this doesn’t stop Ryan from collecting samples.  Pinot Noir is a grape varietal that is known for its proclivity to mutate and has generated more clones, or genetically unique subtypes, than any other grape varietal.  The Pommard clone received its name from the place it was originally sourced and identified, Chateau de Pommard in Burgundy, France.  In our 2012 Pinot Noir from Coast Grade Vineyard the blend is Pommard driven to be a lush and earthy wine with dark fruit.

The next block we enter is the 828 clone as we head through the vineyard towards Smith Grade Road.  These clusters are big and lavish.  Ryan takes a moment to point out some key factors about how the vines were planted and are maintained.  

“The vineyard is planted in North to South rows.  This allows for even sun. On the eastern side of the vine the leaves are thinner and the fruit is more exposed to the early foggy sunlight and on the west side of the vines there is more leaf coverage to protect the grapes from the midday sun.”

The 828 clone is a Dijon clone, meaning it was identified by the University of Dijon in France.  We finish collecting samples in the lower blocks of our 115 clones and the 667 clones, which are two of the most popular Pinot Noir clones according to Jim Beauregard.  Both 115 and 667 are also Dijon clones which tend to have an earthiness, spices, red fruit and soft tannins. 

          

As we begin our return from our sunny late morning walk we are greeted by Ryan’s wife, Rachel and their girls.  The girls have been collecting quartz gemstones on the side of the vineyard and they are happy to show off their “crystals.”

Ryan continues to explain that he does not simply take a refratometer to measure the sugar/brix levels into the vineyard to sample from individual grapes.  

He points out that even on a single cluster there are size variations and other factors for each grape that could result in inaccuracies. Therefore, we all set down in the shade with the sample bags and pop grapes from the four separate blocks making a juice to sample sugar and pH readings. ​

In Ryan’s lab we test each of the clones.  The end result is:  Pommard 18.2 brix, 828 19.8 brix, 115 18.0 brix, and 667 17.2 brix with the pH’s ranging from 3.15 to 3.20.  We usually harvest at 23 to 25 brix - we are almost there.

Be sure to join us October 5th & 6th for our first release of the Pinot Noir clones from Coast Grade Vineyard!

The Beauregard Crew and Their Favorite Pairings

There’s not much better than when food and wine are paired together. At Beauregard Vineyards, one of our favorite aspects about pairings is that they allow us to manipulate our palate. There’s so many different ways to pair food and wine—sweet and savory, acidic and salty—the different ways that we can work with weight, richness, fruitiness, etc. is astounding. Our staff don’t miss a beat in taking advantage of the many ways to pair food and wine.  Here they have shared their fondest memories and a recipe or two!

My most memorable experience at Beauregard Vineyards was the day I met my future husband. I was a recent club member, and I came up to the tasting room with a group of friends for the 2009 fall Pickup Party. I was excited to taste the new wines paired with food from Blackboard Catering, the winners of the recent Santa Cruz Clam Chowder Cook-off, and was pleasantly surprised to meet the owners, Clint and Andy. Clint and I connect at once and spent a large part of the afternoon sipping wine together, eating chowder, and tasting Tabitha's wonderful goodies. Since that time we have had many wonderful memories here and strengthened many relationships including our own. This is a magical place where the quality of the wine is equaled only by the quality of the people that it attracts. As far a recipe, I don't think Clint is ready to pass on his award winning chowder.

—Jada
Beauergard Vineyards Accounting Specialist

Its funny. Im not exactly sure how Ryan and I met...but long long ago when the Beauregard tasting room was on the wharf, two people started a friendship that has lasted the test of both our personalities...it began with a Beauregard Chardonnay that contained hints of chartreuse glistening in the glass with a sparkle in its eye like a naughty boy with grass stains on his knees...a super nova of tropical fruit jumped in my lap after the first pass of my nose...then the banana bread promise grew as she opened  herself up. At the time, Ryan and I were noshing on some St Pats from Cowgirl Creamery, talking nonsense and dreams. Sitting on the couch looking over our bay I fell in love with Beauregard wines...and Ryan. As a winemaker, Ryan knows when to back off and knows when to intervene—a talent lost by many when it comes to the mighty grape.
Nine years later, I love Ryan’s wines more than ever, and have begun a jam company with him and his tribe as my test tasters. We have evolved together and realized our dreams on this little stretch of coast we call home.
Thats my story and I’m stickin’ to it.....
—Tabitha
Beauergard Vineyards Food Specialist & Owner of Friend In Cheeses Jam Company

Let’s be frank: Ryan makes great wine.  Although I enjoy all of his wines, I do have some preferences.  The 2011 Chardonnay from Bald Mountain Vineyard is my current favorite.  When I first sipped this wine, I thought it was French.  It blew my mind.  It is the most refreshing, vibrant, balanced and clean California Chardonnay I’ve ever tried.  I’m smitten.  I drink it by itself, but I cannot wait to pair it up with some delicious food.  I’m thinking dungeness crab and/or oysters?! 

—Stefano
Beauregard Vineyards Tasting Room Associate

I was always a fan of Chardonnays until the trend of big buttery, oaky Chardonnays dominated the market. Then about four years ago a friend of mine introduced me to a Beauregard Vineyards Bald Mountain Chardonnay, and my love of Chardonnays was rekindled. The beautiful, minimally-manipulated Chardonnays that Ryan makes allow for the true nuances of the fruit to come through in a way that make the wine very food friendly. Scallops are one of my favorite foods to pair with the 2009 Bald Mountain Vineyard Chardonnay.

—Suzanne
Beauregard Vineyards Direct to Consumer Manager

I love Rosé, and I’m captivated by the 2010 Rosé of Syrah from the Nelson Family Vineyard.  It is lush, refined and perfect for summer.  Nearly everyday I eat salad, and this Rosé goes with every incarnation of salad I consume from hippy salads topped with crunchy seaweed and kale, to heartier salads filled with grilled chicken, avocado and romaine.  Quite simply, it is a fantastic wine for summertime cuisine.  

—Pamala
Beauregard Vineyards Tasting Room Associate

 

 

Beauregard Vineyards is the place where I took my love of wine to a passion for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.  A favorite of mine and my friends was the 2006 Santa Cruz Mountain Chardonnay. We called it our “Sushi wine” and it went great with homemade sushi rolls and fresh Thai Spring rolls with peanut sauce!  These nights cooking with fresh ingredients and outstanding Chardonnay were priceless.  So grab some seaweed, a bamboo rolling mat, sticky rice and a bottle of Beauregard Chardonnay today!

—Heather
Beauregard Vineyards Online Media/eCommerce & Outreach Director

Perhaps my favorite simple, yet exceptional food and wine pairing here at Beauregard Vineyards was when my coworker Lonny brought a surprise for after work not long after the release the 2010 Beauregard Ranch Zinfandel. After we closed down the bar, Lonny poured us each a small glass of the Zin, and brought out a plate he’d hidden in the fridge. On the plate was a wedge of Humboldt Fog, one of my favorite cheeses. The pairing of the rich and herbal goat cheese with the cool-climate, earthy Zinfandel was breathtaking. In one bite it was as if I were sitting on the edge of a meadow, surrounded by dry brush and brambles, picnicking in another place and time. The best pairings have this ability I think, to capture our senses and to pull us out of the present. By choosing what to eat with what to drink we take gastronomy into our own hands, and by doing so we become the curators of an experience that extends beyond the boundaries we are normally confined to each day into the realm of Dionysian pleasure.

—Jake
Beauregard Vineyards Tasting Room Associate

2010 Rosé of Syrah with Smoked Salmon and a dill creme fraiche

1/2 cup creme fraiche
1/2 bunch fresh dill from Farmers Market
1/2 lemon juiced 
4 cornichons finely chopped
Mix all ingredients in bowl 

1/2 pound of smoked salmon
Slice smoked salmon and serve with extra cornichons and 2010 Rosé of Syrah

—Stefano
Beauregard Vineyards Tasting Room Associate

In The Vineyard with Jim Beauregard - A Beauregard Ranch Exclusive

   Jim Beauregard and I walk up the dusty hillside of the Beauregard Ranch, first passing the lush lower rows of Pinot Noir. Jim tells me that this block is the Pommard Clone, which he planted in 2008 to replace Chardonnay vines. “Why”, I ask. “Because I enjoy the Pommard Clone. It's big, lush and full of black fruit and there is a high demand in the Santa Cruz mountains for Pinot Noir”, Jim replies with his kind smile. The Pinot Noir grapes are the only clusters currently in véraison, which is the stage when the fruit begins to ripen and the grapes change color.  

Jim remembers summers as a young boy playing among the vines at the Beauregard Ranch. He recalls when the family horse, Molly, was relieved of her plowing duties by the Ranch’s first vineyard tractor; Jim thought it was so much fun to drive the tractor through the vineyard that this became his summer job. This memory brings forth the question of if he always knew he would be the viticulturist for the Beauregard Ranch, tending to the vines? He replies that this is not his job, but rather a hobby that he keeps because he enjoys it. He also adds, "I like all the stuff that I do."  His primary occupations being the family grocery store, Shopper’s Corner, and the Chardonnay II.

Moving up the vineyard hillside, Jim and I pass Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon. Jim comments on the original  Beauregard Ranch Zinfandel vines being the first Zinfandel grapes planted in the Santa Cruz Mountains. “These vines are the Primitivo Clone”, which he thinks has more developed characteristics, “and the Cabernet vines are Dijon Clones.”

Jim has successfully replanted the Beauregard Ranch three times and has installed three-hundred acres of vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains.  At home Jim enjoys Beauregard wines regularly but his choice selection depends on what he is eating: "Lamb with Pinot Noir, and Cabernet or Zinfandel with steak."  

Jim believes 2013 is an exciting year for the Beauregard Ranch and the Santa Cruz Mountains. It has been a great growing season and he expects the harvest to begin seven to ten days early this year. The past fours years have been abnormal growing seasons. Cold and foggy summers resulted in low yields from those harvests. Jim notes that 2010 was the coldest year in the Santa Cruz Mountains since 1956.

Because of the cold weather and the low yields, Jim and Ryan decided to use the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Bald Mountain Vineyard to make Beauregard Vineyards’ first sparkling wine, set to release in 2014.  Jim had experience producing sparkling wines in the 80’s for private labels.  With this, he believes Beauregard Vineyards’ first sparkling wine is, “delicious, have you tried it yet?”