2016 Ryme Vermentino ‘Hers’ Las Brisas Vineyard

Region: Sonoma < California
Grapes: Vermentino
Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Organic farming; gravel and sandy soils; whole cluster pressed and aged in a combo of stainless and neutral oak; bottled unfined/unfiltered with minimal added SO2; 285 cases made
Winemaker: Megan Glaab

Ryme is a small Sonoma-based label from a young husband and wife team, Megan and Ryan Glaab (the name Ryme is, in fact, a combo of their names – RY + ME).  They don’t own any vineyards, but put a lot of work into forging vineyard relationships with organic growers from Santa Barbara to Mendocino County.  Each is an accomplished vigneron in his/her own right.  For years Ryan was the assistant winemaker at Wind Gap, before leaving last year to focus full-time on Ryme.  And Megan, who got her enology degree from the University of Adelaide in Australia, where she was force fed all the tricks and tools for making standard-issue wine, has respectfully ignored all the conventional rules and instead forged her path towards low-intervention, mindful winemaking.  She says she and Ryan are driven by their palate, wanting to make the wines she has always loved to drink – high acid, low alcohol, mineral-driven wines that showcase terroir.  Like the Vermentino of coastal Italy, which inspired this bottling.  It’s called ‘Hers’, because this is her expression of the grape – she and Ryan couldn’t agree on the style for their Vermentino, so they each made their own.  ‘His’ is more structured and tannic, with skin contact, while ‘Hers’ is bright and floral, with energetic green apple, jasmine and citrus notes, and a lovely salty finish. So pretty.  Drink now.