Barbera di Lake County: Cameron Hughes Lot 621
I could never be a sommelier. My nose just isn’t developed enough. I can usually zero in on a wine’s country of origin… at least with France, Italy, Spain, and the USA. And MAYBE New Zealand, if it is a Pinot Noir. I can almost always get down to a Varietal as well… provided it falls within the list over there in the sidebar—>
But that’s it. The only way I got to this point is drinking a metric shit-ton of wine.
BUT, I can claim one wine superpower, and that is knowing Lake County. One of the first wines I ever fell truly in love with is a Petite Sirah from Guenoc in Lake County, California. I’ve tried Cabernets, Petite Sirahs, Zins, blends, and now a Barbera from Lake County, and as per usual, I can feel that terroir in this wine as well.
Unlike all those other reds however, this one has a very different character overall. Lot 621 is a light, fruity, refreshing wine. It is the sort of wine that you would enjoy out on a deck on a hot summer day… sitting in the shade of an umbrella over some patio furniture. Sunglasses on. Surrounded by friends and maybe some light appetizers like a charcuterie board. Olives, cured meats, light cheeses.
But here I am, literally watching snow melt off my deck, drinking this little bit of summer. Go figure. This wine shipped to me as part of my CHWine Club Spring shipment last year priced at $13/bottle(!) I should have opened it and tried it then, and had I known, I would have bought several more bottles to share with friends on the deck last summer (instead of, or maybe in addition to, the case of mixed Rosés I did share with friends on the deck last summer!) But no, like the idiot I am, I failed to see it until tonight, when I went in search of something to pair with a pork tenderloin. As soon as I tasted it I went to the CHwine website and checked… Lot 621 SOLD OUT.
Oh well.
This wine is refreshing, and delightful. Very fruit-forward. It finishes well. I wish I had a case of it.
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