The Wine Store: James Morrison's Best Kept Secret

On Monday, my husband went to The Wine Store in Westerly, Rhode Island to purchase more of the 2009 Barbaresco Terre di Bo and he ran into James Morrison. James runs several events at The Wine Store and he invited my husband to attend the Tuesday night tasting of Byron Wines from Santa Barbara.
It was pouring down rain around 5:30 when we headed to Westerly and got there a few minutes before 6 p.m. We were the first ones of a small crowd that showed up to drink wine and Skype with Byron winemaker Jonathan Nagy. We tasted through Santa Barbara Chardonnay, Santa Barbara Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay and Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir, all from 2011. We were able to ask Jonathan questions about the wine, viticulture and winemaking (I hogged the "mike" and asked many questions).
The Santa Barbara Chardonnay had citrus notes, with a touch of minerality and was light yellow in color. Jonathan said that this Chardonnay was fermented in stainless steel and then blended with Chardonnay that had undergone malolactic fermentation in oak barrels. He used CY3079 to conduct the fermentation. There was a general consensus that it was a good wine for summer sipping on the porch or patio. In contrast to the Santa Barbara Chardonnay, the Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay is fermented using indigenous yeast in oak barrels. Jonathan said that it could take up to 7-10 days for Saccharomyces cerevisiae to begin the fermentation. The "wild" or "feral" yeasts start the fermentation and add complexity to this wine. My husband and I agreed that this was a wine that our friend Mary might like.
The Santa Barbara Pinot Noir had a beautiful aroma of rose petals and was clear ruby in the glass. It was a good tasting Pinot. The Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir is from their estate grown grapes and is treated somewhat differently. For both of the Pinot Noirs, more than 20 clones are used in the making of the wine. All of the wines that we tasted ranged between $17-$25.00. James Morrison provided smoked salmon, foccacia, olives and humus to pair with the wines. We enjoyed Skyping with Jonathan Nagy in the company of people interested in wine. It was a great evening!
If you are interested in attending future events, James Morrison convenes the Tasting Club on the second Tuesday of every month at The Wine Store in Westerly, RI.