18 Sep Please The Palate Wine of the Week: The Grenachista 2023 Estate Grenache Blanc, Sonoma Valley

Grenache is a versatile grape; if anyone knows that, it is The Grenachista Casey Graybehl. After all, he started a label focusing exclusively on the Grenache grape. From Grenache Noir, he makes single vineyard designates and blends, as well as rosé, and for white wine, he works with Grenache Blanc. While I have enjoyed all the expressions he makes, I was blown away by the texture and acidity of The Grenachista 2023 Estate Grenache Blanc which is why it is the Please The Palate wine of the week.

About The Grenachista

Casey Graybehl remembers tasting his first Grenache wine and thinking it was “everything I wanted out of a Pinot Noir but more.” He decided that Grenache, an underdog of a grape variety, should be championed. In 2013, he created The Grenachista, focusing on all things Grenache: Single vineyard Grenache Noir, Grenache Blanc, Pét-Nats, Piquettes, and Rosé. Casey seeks out Grenache anywhere he can find it to make small lots of Rhone-style Grenache from California fruit. While Grenache may not seem like it would be hard to find, only 4500 acres of Grenache Noir are planted in California, compared to the 46,00 acres of Pinot Noir. And when it comes to Grenache Blanc, a mutation of Grenache Noir, there are only 602 acres planted in California. So, there is not that much available.

For the Grenache Blanc, Casey sources it from his small 1.5-acre vineyard in Sonoma that he farms by hand. Planted to Grenache Blanc in 1999, Casey’s young daughter named the vineyard Kitty Face Vineyard. What he loves about Grenache Blanc from this vineyard is how it holds its acidity. The grapes are pressed and kept cold until they are put in a concrete egg for fermentation. Sulfur is added so that malolactic fermentation does not start and the wine spends 8 months in the egg before bottling.

Tasting Notes

The fermentation and aging of the wine in the concrete egg results in a wine with an incredibly textured mouthfeel. The nose of the wine has floral notes as well as aromas of peaches, crisp pear, unripe mango, and lime zest. As beautiful as the wine is to smell, it is what is on the palate that is so delicious. The wine is multi-dimensional. The midpalate of the wine is round but the wine has intense, fresh acidity. The wine fills the palate and the finish is long and lingers.

Food Pairing

Grenache Blanc is a food-friendly wine and the acidity of the wine will cut through fatty dishes. Enjoy the wine with Asian dishes, cream sauces, salads, and fatty sheep milk cheeses. I enjoyed the wine on its own as I cooked dinner and then paired it with pasta with sauteed zucchini, mushrooms, and spinach, and topped with feta cheese.

Where To Purchase

Approximately 100 cases were made of The Grenachista 2023 Estate Grenache Blanc, Sonoma Valley which retails for $34 and is available on The Grenachista website.

Meet The Winemaker

Meet Casey Graybehl of The Grenachista and get to know him in 30 questions on the Wine Soundtrack USA podcast.