Bonsoir, I am...Élodie.
Don't you dare tell the AOC that Tank's making a Passetoutgrain. Meaning "pass all grapes," the Passetoutgrain is a blend born in the rolling hills of Burgundy that combines Pinot Noir and Gamay Noir into a fun, juicy red wine. As blends are often more taboo than single-varietal wines, these wines are meant to be more humble, juicy, and playful than traditional Burgundian red wines. While humility may not be our forté, juicy and playful, we're all about.
For this sexy wine, we picked Pinot Noir from the renowned Sun Chase Vineyard in the Petaluma Gap. Ranging from 900 feet to 1,400 feet in elevation, this vineyard sits in a gap that collides with the Sonoma Mountains. Its climate is heavily influenced by the cool Pacific Ocean breeze. Fog blankets the vineyard in a cozy embrace each morning, then burns off in the afternoon in time for the sun to shine in. By evening, a cool breeze has arrived, helping the fruit mature slowly with flavor intensity and acidity.
Gamay Noir is becoming harder and harder to find in California, but thankfully
the Barsotti Vineyard continues to hold it down. This vineyard sits 2,800 feet in elevation above the town of Placerville in the Sierra Foothills. The American River Canyon ushers in cooling breezes down from the snow-capped peas of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It enjoys warm days and crisp nights. Like the Beaujolais region, it is also home to granitic soils.
Pinot Noir: silky and refined. Gamay Noir: juicy, playful. Together, they create...pleasure. Gorgeous aromas of cherries, violets, and perfume abound from the glass. Take a sip and enjoy smooth, wet flavors of fresh strawberries, wild cherries, and raspberries with notes of tea and white pepper. Light to medium in body, with juicy acidity, this wine coats your mouth in a way we must only describe as sensually erotic.
The winemaking team started referring to this wine by the name of Élodie early in the process. And a wine this mysteriously sexy needs a label that's mysteriously sexy, too. Many moons ago, we came across this old photograph we believe is from the 1940s. It bears an image of somebody in stockings, a garter belt, and lace up stilettos. While we know little else about the subject, we can only think it must be Élodie settling in for the night with a glass of Passetoutgrain.
