TESSIER WINERY, SCIENCE MEETS WINE.
Kristie Tacey didn't always want to own her own Wine Label. In fact, when the then Bio-technologist moved to San Francisco from her home state of Michigan, it was to work with the Humane Genome Project. But as we all know, life has its twist and turns and while in the Golden State Kristie found that she had a passion for wine making and was pretty darn good at it. After working as an operations manager and assistant winemaker in the East Bay, Kristie Opened Tessier Winery in 2009. Kristie sources grapes from like minded farmers from the Anderson Valley, Santa Cruz Mountains, Arroyo Seco, and El Dorado foothills and practices low-intervention wine making to produce a variety of wines. Tessier Winery gives a nod to Kristie's past career in most their labels which have a microscopic picture of a Sage Leaf on them. Other labels express Kristie's love of music (you can also see what music Kristie pairs with her wines on the Tessier website), but all have one thing in common; they are delicious.
2022 Tessier Winery Soul Love, Central Coast. $27.99 per bottle
Only 400 cases were made of the Soul Love, this vintage is a blend of 65% Riesling, 22% Mourtaou, 11% Negrette and 2% Merlot. If you’re a die-hard fan of “Glou Glou” wines you’ll love this. If you want to know what a “Glou Glou” is, this is a perfect jumping off point. Ripe strawberries pair with rich stone fruit to coat the palate. Along with the fruit, there is the classic candied mouthfeel from carbonic fermentation that also coats the palate while creating a light profile. A hint of tannic structure really helps keep the wine from feeling like just one long note, depth is always nice to have in a chillable wine.
2022 Tessier Winery Pet Nat Rose, Santa Cruz. $33.99 per bottle.
All the Pinot Noir for this wine comes from Christie Vineyard in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The wine has 3 hours of skin fermentation. Rich stone fruit up front leads to notes of green apple and soft brioche bread yeastiness. Hints of lemon zest create a refreshing finish. Only 75 cases produced.
2022 Tessier Winery Electric Ladyland, California. $24.99 per bottle.
A blend of 67% Albarino, 8% Chardonnay, 8% Pinot Gris, 8% Riesling, 6% Grenache Noir and 3% Pinot Noir, each variety had different time with skin-contact during fermentation. Rich stone fruit and red apple fruit up front leads to mild minerality on the mid-palate. Notes of jasmine and hints of honey on the finish.
2021 Tessier Winery Merlot, Zayante Vineyards. $38.99 per bottle
A combination of rich, savory and earthy. Plums and figs, bright pop of white pepper leads to rich blackberry and boysenberry fruit. Light acidity lifts your palate and allows hints of dry coco to come out on the finish along with more dark fruit.
2022 Tessier Winery Day Dreaming, Central Coast. $30.99 per bottle.
A blend of 57% Negrette, 28% Mourtaou (known domestically as Cabernet Pfeffer) and 15% Riesling, this is your wine if you’re looking for a Glou-Glou wine. Big dark fruit energy up front (lots of plums and figs) lead to an herbal characteristic (basil and sage) that brings great balance. Good acidity throughout keep the wine light in the mouthfeel.
2021 Tessier Winery Saveria Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir. $48.99 per bottle.
While this wine is pretty fruity, there is plenty of acidity to balance it out. Bramble fruit up front, dark berries with vibrant acidity leads to soft vegetal flavors. Bold boysenberry and raspberries on the finish. Overall, the wine has a great mouthfeel and is a wonderful expression of Pinot Noir.