Can't Miss Summer Whites from Maysara
Sourced from the biodynamic Momtazi estate, these are simply stunning values!
Moe Momtazi’s life story is worth a book, but it’s his time in Oregon that matters most to savvy wine drinkers. In a profile of the winery and vineyard a few years back I wrote: “Opinions may differ about the value of biodynamic viticulture, but not about the hard work it requires. When Momtazi purchased the abandoned wheat farm in 1997, it had lain fallow for seven years. The early work went into building roads, fences and infrastructure. In 1998 the first 13 acres of vines were planted. “Initially,” he explains, “we started organic farming, but I soon realized it didn't satisfy me, with all the big companies watering down the rules and regulations for organic. So we very quickly switched to biodynamic.”
Momtazi credits his grandfather, whom he describes as “a purist who didn't like anything grown artificially.” The family lived in the Iranian city of Shiraz, and made wine from the red shahani grape. “One thing we had in the old country was natural farming,” Momtazi recalls. “You put back into nature what you take out of it, in a natural way, using things that nature provides.”
The landscape around the vines is kept intentionally wild, with old groves and diverse insect life, including rare species of butterflies. A variety of herbs and flowers such as chamomile, dandelion, yarrow, valerian, horsetail and stinging nettle are cultivated and made into homeopathic ‘teas’ to be sprayed either on the foliage or injected through the irrigation line to the root system. Over the years, Momtazi notes, “the soil color and fluffiness has changed drastically. We do not import any kind of fertilizer; everything comes from within our own farm.”
The estate winery, Maysara, often holds the red wines back a few years until the family feels they are ready for drinking, but the white wines are released quickly to ensure maximum freshness. The two wines featured here are consistently high-scoring. Over many vintages I have awarded them 91-92 points. These latest releases are in no sense unusual for Maysara, but they are in every way exceptional by any standard.
Maysara 2022 Autees Pinot Blanc
Estate (biodynamically) grown, this densely flavorful wine transcends the usual limitations of the grape. Compound flavors roll through Meyer lemon, pineapple, peach, papaya and cantaloupe like a palate stroll down the produce aisle. But there's more. Savory herbs are captured in the juicy acids, like a bartender's custom infusions. The wine gathers itself in a concentrated core at the back of the palate, and lingers through a remarkably long finish. 315 cases; 12.5%; $20 (McMinnville) 94/100
Maysara 2022 Arsheen Pinot Gris
Though sourced from the same biodynamic estate vineyard, this Pinot Gris is beautifully differentiated from its companion Pinot Blanc. This is not always the case in book-matched estate wines. Native yeast fermentation in stainless steel captures the steely freshness, leesy texture and crisp citrus skin flavors, with lemon, lime and grapefruit in equal proportions. As it warms in the glass the wine fleshes out, adding satsuma orange and hints of lightly bitter botanicals. Generous and palate cleansing, this may be enjoyed immediately, or cellared for another decade. 1288 cases; 12.3%; $18 (McMinnville) 93/100
Both wines are extraordinary values and highly recommended.
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