The County’s Finest One-Off Food Night | Clean Slate’s Just 8

(Photo: Wine Club Marketing Inc.)

No one who has attended a Just 8 Supper Club at Solvang’s Clean Slate Wine Bar would ever, ever say that they just ate. For these exclusive evenings — generally occurring once a month, and plan ahead, as they fill up quickly — offer a kitchen firing at the peak of its creativity, providing an eight-course feast. What’s more, alongside each course are wines, two curated pours per course, from the primo cellar of Matt Kettmann, my colleague here at the Independent and a Wine Enthusiast reviewer. (He warns early in the evening, an army of bottles in front of him, “That’s your job to pace yourself!”) Everyone sits along the bar at the otherwise-closed-for-the-night Clean Slate, melding into one sated, happy food family by evening’s end.

Care to read the rest then do so at the Santa Barbara Independent's site.

The Glories of Another Garagiste

In our current age--that is these terrifying last few weeks of Muskocracy--it's especially good to remember the wonder of a world writ small. Not everything has to be about huge numbers (of dollars, or corruption, or case production). Enter one of my annual favorite events, the Garagiste Wine Festival. This year we were fortunate enough to attend Friday's "Rare and Reserve Kick-Off Party," even more kicky as it featured a buffet of Cajun delights from Clean Slate Wine Bar. Chef Melissa Scrymgeour rocks it, even at the catering level, especially as she's sure to feature something for those who don't do meat (in Cajun that's spelled p-o-r-k). This night it was Gumbo Z'herbes, rich, redolent, and full of everything that grew green. This repast was perfect ballast for an evening of serious wine tasting.

In case you're new to what Garagiste means, it refers to folks who might, and sometimes do, make wines in their garages. We're talking tiny productions--you can't pour at the festival if you make over 1500 cases per year. For comparison, Meiomi--which some people consider wine--makes over 2700 cases of their sweet Pinot a day. 

That means what gets poured at the Solvang Veterans' Memorial Hall is made as passion product, as experiment, for the love of wine and agriculture and the hope to please people. That's highlighted even more on Friday, as winemakers pour their rare and reserve--older vintages, barrel samples, stuff so limited in supply that you couldn't buy it if you tried to bribe someone. But it does give you a beautiful picture of what creative, committed folks are up to in the wine world.

At least on this evening, most of what was poured was red, and much of that was more, let's call them chewy varietals--think Tannat, Tempranillo, or two grapes that despite their names aren't tiny in the slightest, Petit Verdot and Petite Sirah. Much of it was from Paso Robles, too, which might explain the grape choices--it's a lot hotter up there. So Fuil Wines' barrel sample of 2024 Sauvignon Blanc from Vogelzang Vineyard truly did stand out, but might have even in a more crowded white wine field. For as Chryss put it, "I want it to be summer, drinking this wine." And the red-heavy focus didn't stop the occasional oddball, like Winespread Panic Cellars 2022 Mourvèdre that looks light as a rosé, comes in at 12.9% ABV, and they suggest you chill. Owner Mitch Cahoon was happy when I suggested it was a summer porch wine, responding, "You can pound that shit!" Now that's not your usual marketing ploy....

But if you want the usual, you don't attend Garagiste. Instead you get things like Exprimere Wines, whose website has pages for both "Philosophy" and "Science & Art." The name, btw, is Latin for "to express or intone" (it just sounds like a fancy way to say experiment). What made their two pours rare was 2022 was their first vintage, and what you get is two Santa Rita Hills Pinots (I was told from Peake Ranch), that then gets trucked up to Sonoma where they do their magic. The Mia ferments at a cool temp, while the Persey gets exposed to some outdoor sun/heat during ferment. The former is lighter, racier, the latter richer, deeper. Given all the rest of the winemaking is consistent, it really does seem like some controlled experiment after all.

Then there's Boyd Shermis at Tomi Cellars, natty in his striped sports coat, sharing a no longer available Interlaced, a Syrah/Grenache blend. While a combo of those two Rhone grapes isn't anything new, Tomi's is, as they blend older Syrah, to give it more time to round and age, with younger Grenache. The result is a non-vintage wine with components from (in this case) 2019 and 2020. The result is a fully integrated delight. (There is a new NV blend out now, don't fret, but don't wait, either, as Tomi tends to make wines in 25 case increments.)

Speaking of small, we sampled the Pinot Noir and Syrah from Etnyre Wines, whose vineyard is a massive two acres in the SLO County AVA only 3.5 miles from the Pacific. Talk about complete care and control. Talk about cool climate, ocean effect. The Etnyres also had the good fortune to lean on more established wineries in their region to get started, with Alban clones for their Syrah and Talley Rosemary's clones for their Pinot. (People in the business can truly play nice.) Pouring library offerings, the 2016 Syrah was a true standout--gamey in that good Rhone way, with plenty of blueberry fruit and spice and a long finish. 

Garagiste also often gets to show off how those with day jobs in the business working for bigger concerns still run their own tiny labels. Take Sapien Wine, run by Trevor Bethke. He's also assistant winemaker at Cordon Wines and consulting winemaker at Buellton's Easy Street Wine Collective, so he's a busy man. But he's also got a crazy background with degrees in Biochemistry and Bioanthropology. Add it up, especially when he's accessing grapes like Pinot from Fiddlestix and especially an iron fist/velvet glove Grenache from Kimsey in Ballard Canyon, and you've got impressive, elegant wines.

Our only regret Friday was knowing we weren't coming back to do the full tasting with even more winemakers pursuing their visions on Saturday. 

Celebrate a Great Just 8 at Clean Slate

(Photos by Christian Rodriguez Photography, courtesy Clean Slate Wine Bar)

Consider this post just a quick preview of a future article for the Independent. Back in October I was lucky enough to attend a Just 8 dinner at Clean Slate Wine Bar in Solvang. Eight courses, 16 and a bonus wine generously shared from the cellar of the Indy and Wine Enthusiast's Matt Kettmann, only 8 guests, hours of delight. As good as Chef Melissa Scrymgeour's menus usually are, for an event like this one she really gets to play, to do things that would bog down service in her tiny kitchen if she had to crank the dish out all night. So you get stuff like that King Salmon Thai Pumpkin Curry above, with kuri squash standing in for the pumpkin--never a bad move if you ask me. 

I'm not going to do a run down of each of the courses, just drop in some tantalizing glimpses to make you get to one of these extravagantly special evenings one day. Plus it also reflects the nature of what Melissa and her husband Jason, a wonderfully warm host, are doing every night. After all, the restaurant's name refers to the slate they chalk each evening's menu upon. Sure, nights often have themes, from curry to Cajun, but you never quite know what might be served up. It all depends upon the season, what some farmer has that's perfectly ripe, etc. And on Melissa's exquisite palate--see her modern salad Niçoise above, the bluefin tuna a hearty tartare beneath both a potato-parmesan crisp and a scatter of angle-sliced green beans. Four leafs of little gems. Dollops of Dijon vinaigrette. And then the molecular magic of caper pearls, like frozen teardrops of salt.

 

And this elegant rethink of Coquille St. Jacques, one expertly seared scallop, a sprinkle of local, roasted mushrooms, a sauce of bright cream and wine. Speaking of, Kettmann did a wonderful job double pairing each course, to the point with this one the two Chardonnays, a 2022 Beauregard Ben Lomond Mountain and a 2019 Solomon Hills Estate "Belle of the Ball" Reserve, did one of those odd flips--I preferred the former with its racy, Chablis-like character just to drink, but then with the rich dish, the richer Solomon Hills said, "I got this," and sang forcefully along.

So, here's to the gang at Clean Slate, where I did far more than just ate. Look for an article before the next one goes on sale in 2025. And get up there in the meantime.

Introducing Sparks*

James Sparks excitement. James Sparks great wine talk. And now James Sparks scrumptious sparkling wine.

But I guess for some of you I need to back-up. Let me introduce you to Kings Carey, another tiny winery that could and can in Santa Barbara County. It's pretty much all James Sparks, with tasting and marketing assistance from his wife Anna Ferguson-Sparks, and that's how you get the winery's unusual name: the couples' hometowns were (respectively) Carey, Idaho and Kings Point, New York. Sparks is better known as the winemaker for SB stalwart Liquid Farm, crafting some of our county's best Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, plus an annual killer rosé of Mourvèdre. (More on rosé in a bit.)

As with many winemakers working for someone else, Sparks also wanted to follow his own muse too. Hence, Kings Carey, producing a tiny 600-1200 cases a harvest, almost always single vineyard, single varietal. It can get tricky, as Sparks has no vineyards of his own, and he's also meticulous about what grapes he chooses to work with. He insists on organic fruit--as he puts it, "organic is proactive, not reactive"--and that means from year to year what he gets to make might change. But whatever he makes, you will want to drink, promise.

Even better, you can taste at his small winemaking facility that just celebrated its first year in a spot just past the Welcome to Solvang sign (after you leave the town going west) on the 246. Yes, he's the tasting room person, too (most of the time), so you need to book ahead, but it's worth checking out the spot that was a motel in the 1970s (one room in the space was clearly a large shower at some point, and perhaps a chilling room in Kings Carey's future) and most recently where Broken Clock Vinegar Works did something very different with grapes. 

What Sparks does is minimal, and that's why his wines tend to sing of site and varietal. It's fun to be able to side-by-side his two Chardonnays, a 2021 MarFarm from SLO with bright lemon curd loveliness and creaminess, alongside a 2021 from Spear (he's got a soft spot for this vineyard and who could blame him?) in the Sta. Rita Hills, a bit richer than the wine from a bit further north (more heat?) even if made with no new oak. Another difference between the two Chardonnays--the Edna Valley had some residual sugar, so Sparks filtered that out. So he will intervene when he has to. But that's always up to what each wine and vintage suggests he needs to do to let it shine.

Sparks particularly has an affinity for Grenache. His talent is to let the grape sing tenor without merely burying its brightness in dark berry baritone. Take the 2021 To Market Grenache he's pouring right now. At 12.5% ABV it's up to you how and when you hope to love it--give it a quick chill, and it's your warm weather red if you don't want to rosé; serve it cellar temp, and it's a versatile red for apps and cheese or weightier fish or lighter meats. 

And I promised to discuss rosé, didn't I. The Liquid Farm each year is one of our county's standouts, made from Mourvèdre, walking the knife edge of lean and fleshy to the point you keep drinking it trying to decide. That kind of balance isn't easy. But Sparks replicates it with a different but equally pleasing rosé for Kings Carey, made from Grenache, 4-hours skin contact, foot stomped, aged on the lees for 6 months in neutral 400L barrels. So steely and bright it asks where the heck the sun is, and why aren't you out in it and imbibing this delight? 

While I won't walk you through the full lineup--there's equally enticing and lively Syrah and Semillon too--Sparks' most exciting current project is sparkling. To create bubbly in small production is truly a labor of love, as you're not making enough to buy machines to riddle your bottles for you, to point out just one labor-intensive process. While his blanc de noir is still in production--méthode champenoise wine is sort of like trying to make aged bourbon, as it's going to be a many year investment until you release round one--he has released a 2021 Kings Carey Sparkling Pinot Noir Rosé from Spear Vineyard. (See, great grape source is back again.) Of course, it's been a ten-year thought process, he insists, to get to making bubbly. All that thought shows in the glass, that breadiness you want without any heft, that lift from the effervescence, and then the sweet/sour fruit tumbling like a coin that will land the way you placed your bet, every time. If this is just the "simpler" first effort, it's hard to imagine how terrific that blanc de noir will be upon release. 

Then again, Kings Carey was meant as the place where Sparks could play. You'll know that as soon as you glimpse one of the bottles, all sporting busy for a wine label art from Philadelphia-based Hawk Krall. Sparks admits to his love 1960s and '70s art with a Vegas neon feel, hence the art choice that's as bold as his wines are refined. Kings Carey teaches us about a perfect balance we never even imagined existed.

* And, yes, instead of making it clear this post is about a talented winemaker, I had to make a reference to an album title from 1977. Sorry, James! At least Sparks are having a moment again, now.

Alisal Ranch Fires Up California Cookouts in Santa Ynez Valley

You are drawn into a magical world when crossing the wooden bridge over Alisal Creek, as the enticing smells of oak smoke and barbecue offer more olfactory goodness than you can parse, other than sensing you want it all. Next, you’re crossing the Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort’s broad Oval Lawn, festively set with numerous tables topped with fresh flowers, Edison lights strung high above for when the sun sets over the ridge. And suddenly you realize that there’s nothing cuter than kids in cowboy hats. Welcome to the newest version of the Old West, family style. Welcome to California Ranch Cookouts.

Care to read the rest then do at the Independent's site. 

A Reinvigorated Root 246

When locals lamented the closure of Solvang’s Bacon & Brine in August 2017, many didn’t know that Crystal DeLongpré — better known as Chef Pink — landed a new job just two months later. That’s because Chef Pink had so many changes to make at Root 246, the restaurant at Hotel Corque owned by Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, her arrival there wasn’t announced until last fall.

“I don’t think of this place as being a hotel restaurant,” said Chef Pink recently, “but we had to prove ourselves when I started. Hey, we can do this kind of food in this environment, and people are going to embrace it.”

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

Sip This: Bettie Page Rum

Michael Cobb, the man behind the High Roller Tiki Lounge in Solvang, where the tiki drinks are made with wine and not spirits to honor wine country (and to comply with his liquor license), is far from spirits adverse. For now, he’s developed this kicky spiced rum at the request of CMG, the company that holds the Bettie Page trademark and hired Cobb due to his love of all things kitschy and ’50s.

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

Feasts Fit for a (Vi)King

Despite prepping for its 81st Annual Danish Days on September 15-17, Solvang isn’t just going to roll out the aebleskivers. Not that it’s vanquishing all things Viking (heck, there are even weaponry demos), but the hamlet also knows enough to tip its horned helmet at the 21st century and its location amid the Santa Ynez Valley vineyards. That means free concerts by groups like the Ruben Lee Dalton Band, which is more SoCal than Scandinavian, but even more, it means fabulous food and drink.

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

A Mighty First & Oak Grows in Solvang

If you can’t bring the people to you, you have to go to the people. At least that’s the way the Rosenson family saw it. Since 2005, they have owned Coquelicot Estate Vineyard just outside of Solvang. But knowing, as Jonathan Rosenson understated it, that “land use in the valley is pretty strict,” they opted to buy the Mirabelle Inn in Solvang as a hospitality center of sorts for their winery rather than build something on the estate itself.

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

Garagiste Festival 2015: Preview

Two-Buck Chuck produces and sells over 13,000 cases a day. The 156,000 bottles in those cases are enough so that every man, woman, and child in a city like the size of Lancaster, could drink one bottle everyday for a year. One might not want to imagine what this would do for the future of the city if this should ever happen.

Want to read the rest then do so at KCET's Food Blog.

Garagiste Against the Machine

Good timing is often simply good luck, and that's certainly the case with my arrival in Santa Barbara. 1994 was pretty much the dawn of the success of the county's wine industry, so I've had the opportunity to taste and learn, over and over. In those nearly 20 years pioneers have gone bankrupt--twice--while still making terrific vino, a Hollywood film put Pinot on the map, a new AVA got carved out every few years or so, exes and partners have stood equal or more (let's not quibble) with their spouses/exes/"pals" as winemakers, people figured out where to grow Bordeaux varietals (remember the green pepper in every cab once upon a time?), and you can hit 17 wineries without even heading over the hill. Once the Wine Cask's Futures Program was the best way to keep your deeply red thumb on the vinous pulse of the county, but with that a mere memory (unless you have a really deep wine cellar), it was fascinating to attend The Garagiste Festival Southern Exposure: Celebrating the Artisan Winemakers of the Santa Ynez Valley tasting on February 16. There one got to sample the wine of 32 artisans (oh, ok, I hate that word too, but it did mean something once, and does here), who, despite sometimes having ties to larger, more established wineries, all are up to something new, and if nothing else, small. Ryan Cohchrane might win the precious prize, having made only 12 barrels of wine in 2012 (his wines all seem to have names that end "sold out").

But selling out is far from a problem with this intriguing, intrepid group. I had to start my tasting at Larry Shaffer's Tercero Wines table, who, at this point, if he's a garagiste, has at least a three-car garage. As usual he offered an abundance of riches (starting with a vivid '09 Mourvedre) and then some, as he always seems to pour something off the list, too. (OK, I have to admit this was the media/trade tasting, so everyone was trying to double impress. And that works, you know.) One of his greatest projects is a Mourvedre Rose, its pale-pale color and odd funk on the nose (barnyard?) simply not preparing the palate for such a lovely wine that he wisely compared to a Tavel.

Indeed, a pleasant preponderance of pinks on what was a warm day made summer seem very near. In addition to Tercero's, Altman Winery offered a '10 Rose from Petit Syrah that packed a surprising amount of fruit while remaining dry, A-non-ah-mus poured a '12 Rose from Syrah barrel-sample that asked for a veranda with a view to be imbibed upon, and Kaena (another one of the slightly more established garagistes) poured a '12 Grenache Rose barrel-sample to prove many a grape can make a wonderful pink wine.

Well, there's a danger of a write-up like this one to become a mere list, plus when you're trying to taste upwards of 100 wines in two hours, it becomes a bit of a stunt more than a stroll--and since the winemakers themselves were pouring, it was easy to want to linger, discovering winemaker's goals, learning about growing seasons, finding out stories like how the Miller family bought J. Wilkes after Jeff's untimely death and are carrying on his tradition (very very well, it seems).

That said, here are a few producers you want to look for, even though you might have to look hard, as their output is about what a Gallo cranks out since I typed "what a Gallo cranks out."

Ground Effect
Nick de Luca, who has worked at Star Lane/Dierberg among other places, is crafting delightful, sometimes unusual blends, like an '11 Gravity Check that includes Chenin Blanc, Albarino, and Pinot Gris, and he admits as it ages the wine seems to favor one or the other in its profile. There's also the '11 Rock Garden Syrah, Grenache, Zinfandel, a big red monster of berries and vanilla.

La Fenetre
Joshua Klapper aims for direct, elegant wines that could be alongside dictionary definitions of varietals, if you had a dictionary that you could lick to see what things were. OK, that might be a bit gross a description, but the wines--Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah--are anything but.

Shai Cellars
Shawn Shai Halahamy makes bold reds. His '09 Adome is 65% Syrah and 35% Cab and %100 luscious. It could turn PETA's executive board into carnivores, it calls for steak so. His '09 Grenache, as he puts it, "is incredibly savory and meaty, showing copious amounts of dried cherries and kirsch, smoked leather, dried beef, and ground pepper on the nose. This leads to a medium-bodied wine that has a supple, light texture, notable balance, and a long finish." Not only do I agree, I can barely read my notes from this point.

After all the talk in this entry about reds and pinks, it was necessary to include the photo below, with a bit of American flag. But at least our local wine country can wave its banner proudly, with wines like these.

When you opt not to park in spots of a lot marked "Police Station Business Only" for a wine festival, it's advisable to pick a place within walking distance to eat-it-off, as it were. And since this fest ran from noon-2, it seemed a perfect time to walk into Solvang and get a delightful late lunch at Cecco. It certainly didn't hurt it was one of those Santa Barbara perfect spring days that just happen to spring in the middle of February--where else could one want to dine but al fresco in Cecco's charming courtyard? The Caesar salad is a straightforward presentation (Chef David Cecchini is a classicist at heart), all about the crisp romaine, crunchy but not gob-stopper croutons, Parmesan, and a dressing zippy with garlic and anchovy. Then came two wood-fired pizzas, the thin crusts variably charred--since they're cooked in a real wood oven--and the topings spare, but not to the point you need to hunt them down. The Pomodoro was especially lovely with its fire-roasted red and yellow tomatoes a-burst with flavor. Not that the Bianco, adrift in its "snow" of arugula, didn't offer  perfect flavor profile itself, with its salt and brine from artichoke hearts, its richness from daubs of ricotta, and then some red onion and garlic for those notes only the most strong of lilies deliver. A fine way to end the day--plenty left over for lunch the next day, too.

Cecco Is Magnifico

Ever play the game “What was my least favorite dish from that fine meal?” and not be able to come up with one? Ever do that after nine courses? That’s the kind of thing that can happen to you when David Cecchini is in the kitchen, as is the case at Cecco Ristorante, which has been open about six months now in Solvang. The longtime Santa Barbara chef has left the Harbor Restaurant to be full-time at Cecco, a mere half mile from his home, and it shows in the exquisitely balanced flavors on every plate. For example, there are the fried oysters on thin golden beet slices, a brilliant take on surf and below turf. A bit of baby arugula adds an almost horseradishy kick, and then there’s a truffle emulsion for extra unctuousness. Want to read the rest, go do so at the Indy's site.

Hungry for Homey Hadsten House

The dining room is done in a kind of contemporary Empire décor, if there is such a thing, with fanciful oversized snowball light fixtures mid-room and curlicue sliver appliqués on the far wall with the roaring fireplace. “It’s definitely not what you’d expect from Solvang,” Hadsten House’s Bill Phelps said, “but what you might expect in a small restaurant in Santa Barbara. It’s a romantic, dark space.” But the hip look leaves the place far from haughty, especially when your server downsells you some wine. She talks me out of a more expensive, more renowned bottle (rhymes with Pitching Host), leading me to a delicious Ken Brown Sta. Rita Hills pinot noir, for less, especially with the evening’s 50 percent-off sale.

Want to read the rest, then go read it at the Indy site.

Solvang's Got a New Pizzeria in the Oven

It’s rare for a restaurant to become a spectacle weeks before its opening, but that’s what happens when you end up hoisting a nearly 6,000-pound pizza oven through the window—the only spot it would fit into the building—of your soon-to-open establishment. That was the recent scene at Cecco Ristorante (475 First St., #9, Solvang, 688-8880), the latest project from Chef David Cecchini (of The Harbor, Nu, and Wine Cask fame).

Want to read the rest, then go read it at the Indy's site.