2015 Oro en Paz Lake County Semillon ‘Lushinger Vineyard’

Region: Lake County < California

Grapes: Semillon

Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Certified organic farming; volcanic soils; 6 hours on the skins then ferments and ages in 500L old barrels; minimal So2 at bottling; 11.5% ABV

Winemaker: Ben Herod

Our friend Ben Herod sources this Semillon from a certified organic vineyard on Clear Lake, which sits on a massive volcanic complex northeast of Napa Valley.  The lake itself, the deepest in the US, is actually a volcanic caldera (a large crater formed by the evacuation of a magma chamber – basically a volcano that implodes upon itself).  Soils here have some of the youngest volcanic soils around, and the Mt. Konocti, on the shore of the lake, has the potential to erupt again.  This is serious volcanic fruit, which comes across loud and clear in this wine.  The texture is ethereal, weightless but with a gravitas, structured, with extreme stony minerality balanced by unripe pineapple and grapefruit.  The bottle age gives it a completeness.  Incredible food wine.