The Santa Cruz Mountains are home to over 70 wineries and 200 growers. The area produces primarily Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay, with lesser amounts of varieties such as Merlot and Zinfandel. The wines produce vary by microclimate but generally showcase concentrated fruit with an earthy mineral quality.

Tasting Santa Cruz Mountains wines can be somewhat challenging. Many of the wineries are small boutiques with limited tasting hours. Luckily, 13 of the region’s wineries recently came together at a tasting at La Storia Enoteca (Los Gatos).

It provided an opportunity to catch up with some of the wineries that we have long known but not recently sampled. It also introduced us to a number of smaller, newer wineries that we had not previously known. Among the highlights of our tastings were:

• Lester Estate Wine’s 2018 Brando and 2019 Mercurio Pinot Noirs;
• Kathryn Kennedy Winery 2022 unfiltered Alberino, 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon and especially the 2016 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon;
• Houser Family Vineyard’s 2018 Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir and 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon;
• Mount Eden Vineyards’ 2018 Estate and Mount Eden Pinot Noirs and its 2017 and 2018 Domaine Eden Cabernet Sauvignons;
• Thomas Fogarty Winery 2019 Rapley Trail Vineyard Pinot Noir;
• Storrs Winery 2021 Sauvignon Blanc and 2018 Central Coast Zinfadel;
• Altaro Family 2021 Lindsay Paige Vineyard Pinot noir and 2021 Alfare Family Vineyard Pinot nor. Joyce also enjoyed the 2021 Heirloom Clone which was a bit too fruity for Tom.

We also had an opportunity to stop at a couple of tasting rooms recently.

• Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard produces wines from native French varietals. It is also home to its sister label Quinta Cruz, which produces grapes from Spanish and Portuguese varietals. They source their grapes primarily from local vineyards in Santa Cruz Mountains, Monterey, and Santa Lucia Highland, with a few of the Portuguese varietals from Lodi and the Sierra foothills. We tried a big, savory, dark-fruited 2014 Branciforte Creek Pinot Noir and a big, dark, tannin 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon. Our Iberian tasting was more varied. The 2020 Arinto had a pleasantly crisp, citrus, and green apple taste. The interesting 2017 Touriga was floral yet earthy. The 2018 Graciano was smokey and savory. We ended with two classic port varietals. The 2010 Rabelo (Tempranillo, Touriga Nacional and Tinta Cao) had a fruity nose and a somewhat sweet, fruity palette. The second was a fortified Tawny made from the same grapes.
• MJA Vineyards produces a range of whites and reds from grapes sourced through central California. We focused exclusively on its reds. The 2016 DaVine Cellars Pinot Noir was very fruity-forward. The Hollister-sourced 2019 Sangiovese was very earthy. The 2012 Tempranillo (Amador County) was savory. We finished with three Cabernet Sauvignons sourced from different Napa and Sonoma Valley appellations which MJA labels as Serene Cellars Cabernet Sauvignons: a 2016 from Alexander Valley, a 2011 from Calistoga and our favorite, a big, complex, nicely balanced 2016 from Atlas Peak. While expensive ($125), it was lovely.