Jeb Dunnuck - Santa Barbara Report: Margerum and Barden Highlights

MARGERUM 2016 M5 WHITE
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY $21 90 points

MARGERUM 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC SYBARITE 
HAPPY CANYON $21 87 points

BARDEN FONTE 2015
STA RITA HILLS $36  89 points

MARGERUM 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC D
HAPPY CANYON $36 89 points

MARGERUM 2015 CHARDONNAY BARDEN
STA RITA HILLS $48 94 points

2014 BARDEN FONTE
STA RITA HILLS $36 91 points

2016 RIVIERA ROSE 2015 M5
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY $21 ROSE 91

2014 UBER SYRAH 
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY  $40 91 points

MARGERUM 2014 CHARDONNAY BARDEN
STA RITA HILLS $48 92 points

MARGERUM 2015 PINOT NOIR BARDEN
STA RITA HILLS $68 89

MARGERUM 2014 SYRAH BLACK OAK VINEYARD 
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY $45 92 points

Doug Margerum’s 2016 M5 White checks in as a blend of 48% Grenache Blanc, 14% each of Roussanne and Viognier, along with 12% each of Marsanne and Vermentino. Its light- yellow color leads into impressive notes of lemon peel, honeysuckle and white flowers. Clean, balanced and textured, with bright acidity and a great finish, it's going to shine on the dinner table. The 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Sybarite has a touch of effervescence giving it additional lift and freshness. Crisp pineapple, citrus and tropical notes emerge from this medium-bodied, nicely textured, enjoyable and quaffable Sauvignon Blanc that's ideal for drinking in its youth. Fresher than the Sybrite, the 2015 Sauvignon Blanc D (100% Sauvignon Blanc) offers more citrus, lime and hints of minerality in a refreshingly lively, balanced style.

Lime, citrus, mint, spice and green herbs emerge from the 2015 Barden Fonte which is an interesting blend of 35% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Blanc and 30% Pinot Gris. It has solid purity, a fresh, elegant texture, high, yet integrated acidity and a clean finish. More expensive, the 2015 Chardonnay Barden saw full malolactic fermentation and was brought up in 66% new French oak. It offers terrific notes of white peach, subtle pineapple and brioche, medium to full-bodied richness, plenty of texture and a clean, elegant style on the palate. It's a smokin’ good Chardonnay that readers should snatch up.

The 2014 Barden Fonte checks in as 39% Chardonnay, 29% Pinot Blanc and the balance Pinot Gris that spent six months in a combination of demi-muids, puncheons and stainless steel. It offers a terrific bouquet of citrus, white peach, brioche, mint and lime, with plenty of building richness and depth developing with time in the glass. Textured, layered and yet still fresh and lively, it’s a terrific white to enjoy over the coming couple of years. Coming from the La Encantada and La Rinconada Vineyards in the Sta. Rita Hills,

the 2014 Chardonnay Barden spent 10 months, on lees, in 60% new French oak. It’s a racy, elegant, lively chardonnay that offers terrific notes of stone fruits, citrus and salty minerality. Picking up an exotic mintiness with time in the glass, drink this medium-bodied, graceful white over the coming 4-5 years.

Doug always makes a light-colored rosé and his 2016 Riviera Rosé gives up pretty, classy notes of strawberries, citrus blossom and hints of salty minerality. Clean, impeccably balanced and classically dry on the palate, it's a terrific rose that's going to shine over the coming summer months.

The 2015 Pinot Noir Barden is a forward, rounded wine that offers lots of passion fruits, strawberries and hints of sappy flowers in its medium-bodied, textured style. It has plenty of fruit, yet lacks some integrated on the palate, so I wouldn't push the aging curve.

The 2015 M5 checks in as a blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Counoise and Cinsault that was had each of the varieties aged separately in mostly neutral barrels. It has a lively, elegant style as well as classic notes of raspberries, crushed flowers and licorice. Medium-bodied, seamless and supple in the palate, drink this total charmer over the coming 4-5 years. Red currants, blackberries, smoked herbs and hints of violets all emerge from the 2014 Syrah Black Oak Vineyard, which is 100% Syrah that spent 20 months in 17% new French oak. Made in a reductive style and needing air to show at its best, it’s an elegant, silky, polished beauty that has no hard edges, ripe tannin and a great finish. In a similar style, with lots of juicy red, black and blue fruits, the 2014 UBER Syrah comes from equal portions of the Black Oak, Colson Canyon, Purisima and John Sebastiano Vineyards. It has plenty of classic Syrah pepperiness, medium to full-bodied richness, present tannin and a good finish. It should be at its finest from 2019-2026. Website: www.margerumwines.com