There are, of course, several ways for winemakers to approach their craft. They can showcase their employment of oak or other vessels, play with different techniques to coax a wine in one direction or another, or even step back and allow the grapes to speak for themselves.
The 2018 Grenache from Seabold’s Bold Wine Co. label is an example of the latter approach. Winemaker Chris Miller delivers refreshing simplicity – a wine with keen fruit and bright acidity suited to a summer afternoon. On the nose it offers a bowl of mixed berries, with strawberries here, blueberries there, lolling happily over more down-to-earth notions of herbs and soft leather. A sip reveals a lively strawberry with a brisk citrus edge, balanced by a medley of dry herbs and a hushed snarl of dusty spice. On the finish, the freshness mellows and the sensations deepen, as if in the joy of summer comes a realization of late fall. It is a uniquely pleasing wine, easily understood as a light, breezy red to enjoy at a gathering. Yet with a relaxed complexity and deft balance, it’s also a thoughtful and compelling wine.
Miller’s Bold label represents introductory wines, but that bears some explanation. He has a great interest in different terroir and grape varieties – including those not common to Monterey County – and seeks out new vineyards to work with. He reserves the Bold label for these new locations, as a way to introduce them distinct from his estate versions.
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