Gavin began his path towards a winemaking career before he could legally drink while working for two of the most respected Santa Barbara wineries: Au Bon Climat and Qupe. He eventually started his own wine label in 2007 at a ripe old age of 21 years old. His 2012 Los Alamos Chardonnay is a rare example of the potential of California Chardonnay and has more in common with the wines of the Côte de Beaune in Burgundy than the typical California style of rich and oaky Chardonnay. Parts of Santa Barbara have a chalk like diatomaceous soil that is very similar to what you find in Burgundy and Gavin commonly finds seashells in the soil of this particular vineyard.  The Los Alamos Vineyard existed underneath the sea for millions of years causing the buildup of diatoms and other sea life on the seafloor, then the sea retreated leaving the perfect places for vineyards to be planted. These sites typically yield the best examples of Burgundian varietals in California and can sometimes pass for Burgundy in blind tastings.

Gavin picks the Chardonnay at what he considers to be optimal ripeness while retaining important levels of acidity, and ferments the wine in neutral oak barrels yielding a wine driven by minerality and freshness. After fermentation, he finishes the wine in 15% new french oak for about 16 months. The wine exhibits classic old world character of just ripened asian pear, green apple, lemon curd, fresh acacia flowers, chalk, lemon zest and a touch of new oak. On the palate the wine has a very creamy texture driven by earthy tones of chalk and wet rocks. This wine is a baby at the moment and will truly start showing its potential in a few years, but is delicious to drink now if you give the wine an hour in a decanter. I believe this wine will peak in 3-4 years from now. Try not to drink this wine too cold, about 55-60 degrees seems to be the sweet spot for its true personality to show.