Matt and Alexis Iaconis of Brick & Mortar are not here to make conventional wines. They’re here to push the envelope of individual vineyards in a relentless quest for the best fruit—and the most soulful, authentic wines. If they have to throw the rulebook out during that search, so be it.
Maybe that’s why today’s Spring Mountain AVA sparkler, crafted in the classic
méthode Champenoise (“Champagne method) caught us all unawares—I was not expecting a Pinot Noir-Chardonnay sparkler from a high-elevation vineyard site in Napa, particularly after assuming my glass contained Premier Cru Champagne. But sure enough, this bottle was chiseled from one of the best-kept secrets in the Valley: the “La Perla” vineyard. Its shallow volcanic soils, high elevation, treacherous grade, and cool Pacific breezes mean concentrated fruit and high acidity—all necessary ingredients in distinctive sparkling wine. “It’s the best sparkling wine we’ve ever made,” says Matt, a ringing endorsement considering their previous bottlings were house pours at iconic wine-country destinations Single Thread and The French Laundry. No doubt about it, this bottle will have any Champagne lover doing a triple-take. How can this wine come from this place? Matt’s the only one that truly knows, but ordering a case of this stunner to savor over the next decade is a good way to start figuring it out.
Matt was ready when he got the call he and Alexis had been waiting on for three years: There was a ton-and-a-half of Chardonnay available from the legendary La Perla Vineyard, nestled high between the crags of Spring Mountain. Did he want it? Oh yes. Brick & Mortar had been sourcing exquisite Pinot Noir from La Perla since 2013, but Matt had been daydreaming about the adjacent Chardonnay from the moment he set eyes on it. It didn’t matter that Brick & Mortar already made three still Chardonnays from different single-vineyard sites around California; La Perla’s fruit was undeniably special. Clocking in at 1,700 feet of elevation and a 25% grade, the vineyard is a triumph of human endurance and imagination. Matt talks about walking the rows for the first time and feeling like he was in the Coliseum. The volcanic, sedimentary soils produce some of the unlikeliest and most concentrated fruit in the entire Napa Valley, fine-tuned by chilly nights and long, sunny days.
Arriving at La Perla the morning after the fateful phone call, it became obvious that the Chardonnay was of impeccable quality after an ideal growing season...but also that there was significantly less than 1.5 tons available. That meant some quick thinking on Matt’s part. He ran down to the other end of the vineyards to sample Brick & Mortar’s Pinot, already scheming. Sure enough, it was at the perfect ripeness to produce a blended Chardonnay and Pinot Noir sparkling wine.
That might sound like a leap, but Matt and Alexis had a few years of sparkling wine production under their belts in addition to connections in Champagne. Bubbles had always been a passion of theirs—they’d read case studies, experimented, and collaborated extensively in preparation for an opportunity exactly like this one. It made intuitive sense to combine the 800 pounds of perfect Chardonnay fruit a portion of their Pinot. Most “Old World” sparkling wine producers would raise their eyebrows in disapproval but Matt’s intuition was telling him full steam ahead. The grapes went into the same bin—64% Pinot Noir and 36% Chardonnay. After a gentle press cycle, the juice went directly into neutral oak barrels for native yeast fermentation. Following a strict méthode Champenoise, the wine rested for 10 months prior to tirage (bottling). After 40 months sur latte (bottles stacked on their sides) the La Perla Brut was riddled and hand-disgorged, finished with a dosage (sugar addition) of two grams/liter for the tiniest lick of softness layered over that bright mountain-born acidity.
The end result? The La Perla Brut absolutely
shimmers. Its aromas manage to capture the best of both worlds: Pinot’s strawberries-and-cream notes luxuriously accented by Chardonnay’s toasted hazelnuts and acacia blossom. Spring Mountain’s volcanic soils build some serious mineral backbone here, giving structure to a rush of lemon custard and spiced apple notes on the palate. It’s all accented by gloriously fine mousse that tickles your tongue and melts like a kiss of briny sea foam. La Perla is that perfect bottle of bubbles poised between ripeness and freshness, richness and focus. It’s wonderfully versatile as a result, ready to accompany anything but particularly satisfying with this recipe for Southern-style cornmeal-battered fried chicken. Like any world-class sparkler, La Perla has fantastic aging potential and will continue to surprise and delight for the next 15 years. Will it ever be made again? I don’t know, but my fingers are crossed. This is a landmark Californian wine!
