2020 Acquiesce Grenache Blanc
The Winery
When Sue Tipton founded Acquiesce Winery, she was on a mission unique to Lodi AVA and in fact, most vinicultural areas. She sought to offer only “white Rhone wines”!! She was chastised and admonished why she should not focus on “solely white wines”. Yet based on her passion and life experiences in France, she proceeded without wavering. She sourced and planted the best vines from the Chateau de Beaucastel of Chateauneuf du Pape on her quest. Today she has and continues making artisan and award winning boutique wines. Her awards are too numerous to list, but include International Women’s Wine Competition Gold Medal, California State Fair Commercial Wine Competition Gold Medal, American Fine Wine Competition Double Gold, SF Chronicle Wine Competition Gold Medal and many, many more.
The Wine
Pulled this bottle of 2020 Acquiesce Grenache Blanc from the cellar to have with our meal last night. I am a big fan of Grenache, but had never tasted this Grenache Blanc from Acquiesce. Acquiesce Winery has 3 acres of Grenache Blanc near the Mokelumne River in the Lodi AVA Appellation. The vines come from the famous French Château de Beaucastel via Tablas Creek. The cool nighttime breezes from the Mokelumne River provide the necessary climate for the grapes to ripen with fruity flavors and balance. Susan Tipton as always handpicked and pressed as whole cluster to the essence of this varietal. The wine has a residual sugar of zero and aged six months sur lie which provides a round and mouth filling flavors.
On the eyes it appeared a light golden color and medium heavy viscosity. My initial thought was it would be a very light flavored wine and perhaps I might have chosen the incorrect wine with this meal. Once on the nose, I was immediately introduced to spicy, explosive and intriguing floral aromas. Then on the palate, green apples, brioche and soft Meyer lemons but not edgy like a Sauvignon Blanc. The wine lists for $28/bottle and for such a subtle powerful wine, this is a bargain. It won a Gold Medal at the 2021 San Francisco International Wine Competition. This wine now made my Best Wines Tasted of 2022. The timeframe runs from December 16th 2021 to December 15th 2022. I just published the Best Wines Tasted in 2021 last week.
The Food and Wine Pairing
Last night pulled this out to go with one of my favorite dishes, a special Shrimp Pad Thai recipe. At first I thought it might be “too light” but I was quickly corrected with the first sip! This Pad Thai recipe packs a little heat flavoring/spices with flat rice noodles, virgin oil, minced garlic, uncooked shrimp, eggs, bean sprouts, red bell pepper, green onions, peanuts, chopped cilantro and lime juice. The Pad Thai sauce included fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, Sriracha and creamy peanut butter! Limes were plated to squeeze the juice over the top of the dish. Accompaning the meal was a fresh garden salad with an Asian dressing. The wine was mouth-filling refreshing to quench the palate. A wonderful pairing and sipping wine. I knew it was a white wine to go with seafood but when I looked up the winemakers’ notes, she specifically stated it went well with “spicy Asian food”—Susan Tipton was absolutely correct!
Sláinte,
Michael
California Wines & Wineries 