A collection of wines from 3 women winemakers with unique perspectives. 10% of sales donated to National Network of Abortion Funds.
Âmevive 2021 Gamay
Johan Vineyards 2020 Rosé Petillant Naturel Estate
Domaine Magdalena 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon ‘Lil’ Mag’
Âmevive 2021 Gamay
The Wine:
Made from 100% Gamay from an organically farmed block in Shokrian Vineyard, Los Alamos. Whole cluster fermented and spent 23 days on skins. After pressing, Gamay was aged in neutral French oak barrels. Fresh and structured, this wine has lush sweetness, a little acid and some tannin. Built to age or to enjoy now. 12.8% alc.
The Winemaker: Alice Anderson makes natural wines for the classic palate. After studying viticulture and oenology at Cal Poly, she spent a pruning season in Central Otago, New Zealand before spending two years working in the Northern Rhône, where she adopted the seamless connection between farming and winemaking indicative of the region. Upon returning to California, Alice worked with Justin Willett at Tyler Winery and Angela Osborne at A Tribute To Grace, now working with Graham Tatomer. She and her partner comprise Âmevive Winery, and farm the 10 acre historic Ibarra-Young Vineyard in Los Olivos District AVA in Santa Barbara County. Focusing mostly on Northern Rhône varieties, they farm using biodynamic and regenerative organic practices, actively rotating chickens, sheep and ducks throughout the vineyard, and add nothing to the wines but occasionally minimal sulfur.
Johan Vineyards 2020 Rosé Petillant Naturel Estate
The Wine: Made from 100% Demeter certified Biodynamic Pinot Noir. Grapes were lightly whole cluster pressed and fermented in stainless steel. Prior to bottling, 1 barrel of red Pinot Noir was blended back into the wine to achieve the rosé color. Full of ripe fruit flavors and higher acidity for a fresh and juicy expression. 12.2% alc.
The Winemaker: Morgan Beck’s winegrowing journey began at an Enology & Viticulture certificate program in Argentina. Falling in love with Pinot Noir, she followed this grape around the globe, working harvests in California, Central Otago NZ, Casablanca Valley in Chile and Oregon. Wanting to gain experience in organic/biodynamic viticulture, she also worked a few seasons in Sonoma/Napa before jumping back to the cellar and focusing her winemaking pursuits on low-manipulation approaches, eventually landing in Oregon. Morgan joined the Johan team as the winegrowing assistant in 2015 and after working closely with mentor/winegrower Dan Rinke, stepped into the winemaker position in 2018. Biodynamic practices have become a foundation of Morgan’s personal winegrowing approach. While always working towards a holistic/regenerative system, Morgan’s goal is to share the story of the growing season, the place and the people behind the wines each year.
Domaine Magdalena 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon ‘Lil’ Mag’
The Winemaker:
Maggie Hedges and her husband, Christophe, planted 4 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon on their Red Mountain property in 2004, but the first vintage of Domaine Magdalena didn’t come about until 2014. As they’d built their house on that same plot of land, Maggie and Christophe were living in the vineyard while growing their family, and realized the healthiest, most sustainable way to grow grapes would be the only (and best!) option. With organic farming at the time offering little in the way of tangible guidelines, they decided to work toward Biodynamic certification, which they secured in 2011. The guiding principle of Biodynamics is minimal inputs, to allow things to grow as they would without human intervention, and Maggie’s philosophy is much the same. They think of themselves more as “fermentation management."
