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Escarpé [adjective] rising with a sudden, rather than a gradual slope. It describes a steep, difficult, yet well worn path which is often dangerous, but conquerable by those who persevere. This very much signifies our previous year, and 2022 as a growing season. Every year since we began our ALLBAER journey, each release has been named after a French theme; an homage to the vintage. While our focus and ethos remain the same, the final product will always be influenced by life and nature’s curveballs. This results in no wine being directly reproducible year upon year, and accordingly, should be respected as its own creation. Escarpé offers a perfect description of this release. Trudging up a steep path, mourning the loss of loved ones, while maintaining focus and execution despite farming challenges, and carving our ALLBAER path in the world.
Which brings us to today – September, a wonderful time of year. Grapes are through veraison. Initial picks have been scheduled. Picking bins are being cleaned. Dusty processing equipment is being polished in preparation for another awesome year here on the Central Coast. All of which will be happening in a new facility. We're embarking on a new path, and this letter is being written to inform you it is almost that time for our next release in October.
Our last release, Là Haut, was one I was particularly proud of. We had finally grown enough to make small blending tweeks, and the growing season was extremely moderate despite going through a drought period. It was our favorite release yet, so I found it fitting to name the release, Up There. Little did I know that this name would have a second connotation. I remember being exhausted from working well into the night, piecing together the finishing touches of our first shipping window. The next morning, I had loaded all the orders into the UPS truck, and went briefly to check on my brother as he was recovering from a leg injury. That was the last time I saw him, heard his laugh. In retrospect, it was incredibly symbolic that I had chosen this name, Là Haut — Up There, and the first day the wine was released to the world, I would also lose my brother. Someone I had spent my whole life with — arguing, playing, fighting and learning. This last year has been difficult, navigating what our life is like without him — Escarpé.
The 2022 vintage brought a novel challenge. The second week of August, the defining point of the vintage as the grapes were finishing, going into their final ripening period, Mother Nature blasted us with ten days of 105 degree weather. I distinctly remember going to look at our Syrah block on August 16th, 2022. It was ready to pick. Precisely 21 days earlier than the prior year. ‘The earliest harvest in history.’ Picking this early was a path that no winemaker had anticipated. It was crucial for me to not let the tradition of specific times or dates deter judgment on when to pick.
Our goal was to capture the freshness of the 2022 growing season. To do this, we had to be on our toes with our extractions. Starting by precisely sorting the clusters on the table. For some lots, we threw away 45% of the total yield, as the grapes that were over-exposed to the heat endured severe desiccation and were unusable. We included more whole clusters than in the past to create invigorating wines and add freshness. Finally, very gentle cap management techniques allowed us to not over extract tannin from seeds, which weren’t fully lignified. Careful watching and anticipating growth early in the season allowed us to specifically modify our techniques to suit the condition of the fruit and maintain the character of our wines. These beauties are some of the best versions of what we’ve crafted thus far. Mother Nature keeps throwing us curveballs and we’ll continue identifying them and knocking them out of the park.
2023 Escarpé White
This year marks our second go around making Chardonnay from Bien Nacido. Planted in 1973, this vineyard has been producing some of the best wines in California. The rows for our block are oriented east-west and the fruit exposed on the southern position of the canopy because it carries more maturity than the northern aspect. For 2023, I wanted a white with a little extra gusto and requested to only have fruit from the southern side. Our winemaking methods stayed the same: whole cluster pressing, rigorously stirring the press pan, and dispersing the juice in 11L portions in one stainless steel drum, one once used french oak barrel, and two new french oak barrels. Once primary fermentation was complete, approximately 8 weeks later, we transferred all of the wine to oak barrels. This went through elevage in 66% new oak, 33% once used. Stirred regularly to enhance the silkiness and mid-palate richness resulting in a velvety texture. It was bottled in September 2024, just as harvest was getting underway. This wine is a true gem.
2022 Escarpé Sangiovese
What a beauty this wine has come to be. It’s been a wonderful learning experience to find what is best for this grape. In 2022, we continued with our program of splitting our parcel in two picks. The first offers tight tannins, lower alcohol, and fresher aromatics, and the inclusion of fifty percent whole cluster. Our second pick carries slightly more alcohol, less acidity, and no whole cluster to preserve the purity of the Sangiovese aromatics. Both lots were aged in large-format vessels. This parcel only has produced 600-900 liters of wine since we’ve been making it for you. In order to increase our offering, my thought was to add a little spice to the blend with a mellow Tuscan-style Cabernet Sauvignon. 2022 was our first attempt at this and I must admit I couldn’t be more psyched with the outcome. This resulted in 79% Sangiovese, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon. 21% New French Oak, and 38.5% whole cluster.
2022 Escarpé Grenache
As with last year we had the same protagonists here in 2022 of block 11 and block 9. The differences farming styles can make in Grenache are incredible. Block 11, was planted each vine to a stake, head-trained, with a smaller goblet. Because it’s not a traditional large goblet, fruit is thinned 40-60% early on while the clusters are green. Imagine Côte Rotie. This drastically affects yields, but the crop is fantastic because the vine isn’t as stressed trying to pull a full crop load to phenolic maturation.
In 2021, I noticed a similar parcel planted on my local ‘mountain bike’ trail in Paso. I reached out to the winery, only to find, they don’t sell fruit from their estate vineyard. After much persistence, they were convinced to sell a small portion of their already tiny block. 2022 will be our first time incorporating Copia Grenache to our blend. 9% Piazza Bella Vista Syrah.
2022 Escarpé Syrah
Again this is a wonderful rendition of ying vs yang. Syrah is a grape that showcases its typicity more than other varieties. We’ve been making this wine with the intention that neither cool nor warm climate produce the end all be all Syrah for us. It is somewhere between where the magic is found. Santa Barbara is a cooler growing region than Paso. Syrahs from here often carry aromatics of blood, iron, olive tapenade, slate. While Paso Syrah’s tend to be juicy, rich, fruit-bombs. This tension is our driver for this wine. Letting the two drastically different tones play against and towards one another. And the final piece — I like to implement Graciano into the act. It’s a powerhouse of a grape with unwavering acidity, inky color, and very little tannin. This last addition is the perfect moderator for the two competing Syrah protagonists. For 2022, all the Syrah went through elevage in new or once used oak.
So without further adieu, we present you our 5th release, Escarpé. This release will be available to all mailing list members, October 8th, 2024 at 10am PST. As always, this offering will be available on a first come first serve basis. Finally, it is a pleasure to share our story with you as we continue to grow and learn. And a BIG THANK YOU for following us along on this journey.
Sincerely,
ALL the BAERs
