This modern estate vineyard and winery in Santa Maria Valley produces 5 different sparklers, all the in Champagne method. However, 4 of them are only for Presqu’ile’s wine club members. And this is just 1 reason to join the club. They also offer discounts on their food (a scrumptious Meze feast) and their elegant, cool-climate still wines, plus an a-la-cart and by-the-glass menu only available to club members.
But everyone can enjoy Presqu’ile’s Non Vintage Brut Cuveè Sparkling, the deliciously beautiful Mezze Picnic + wine flight, and gorgeous views on the patio, while overlooking vineyards and the 1-acre garden where much of the food is grown.
The Non Vintage Brut Cuveè Sparkling is 40% Chardonnay and 60% Pinot Noir, made in the same Méthode Champenoise used in France. This wine is non vintage, meaning the winemakers at Presqu’ile can blend grapes harvested in various years into the wine, which ensures the flavor and aroma profiles remain consistent each year. This is also a common practice at the best Champagne Houses in Champagne, France.
Méthode Champenoise is how sparkling wine is made in the Champagne region of France, also called méthode traditionnelle or classique. This is the highest-quality and most labor-intensive way to make sparkling wine. It involves bottling the still wine with additions of sugar and yeast after a first fermentation, ensuring a second fermentation happens in the bottle, trapping the bubbles inside. It then goes through aging (and periodic turning of the bottles to force the lees to the neck of the bottle), until it’s ready for dégorgement (to get these lees out) and dosage (to finish the wine).
These bubbles are very similar to Champagne-style wines. There are toasty notes, lemon and cream in the aromas, and flavors of apple and pear, with minerality and a bright, clean finish.
Visiting Presqu’ile Vineyard & Winery is delightful, and there are many options. Choose from the Wine & Food Experience, the Presqu’ile Tour + Tasting, the Estate Horseback Tour + Tasting, or Wine and Bocce for an afternoon of this wine country game with friends.
See more! There are over 70 sparkling wine producers in Santa Barbara County.
Mezze Picnic + Wine at Presqu’ile Vineyard & Winery
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