Local Drink Guide
Where to Find Silicon Valley’s Sparkling Wines
Drink sparkling wines year round, from the beginning to the end of your meal. Sparkling wine is the ultimate food-friendly wine, working with everything from potato chips, fried chicken or tacos to caviar, duck or dessert.
Nearly two dozen wineries produce sparkling wine around the Silicon Valley. We list seven local sparkling wine makers to try!
Equinox Wines
Barry Jackson ages his sparklings longer than anyone in Silicon Valley. While his current vintages 2014 and 2015 are beautiful, the 2001 Extended Tirage (aged on the lees in the bottle for 15 years) is spectacular, with toasted honey notes, creamy lemon and baked apple with a butterscotch finish.
A true Champagne fan’s wine.
2015 Monterey Blanc de Blanc, traditional method, $45
2014 Santa Cruz Mountains Blanc de Blanc, brut nature, traditional method, $65
2001 Extended Tirage Blanc de Blanc, traditional method, $100
Guglielmo Winery
An homage to founder Emilio Guglielmo, sparkling wines have been part of the family’s tradition for more than 50 years. Emile’s Grand Cuvee is the most complex and driest of the effervescent wines.
NV Emile’s California Champagne, Extra Dry (slightly sweet), Charmat method, $15
NV Emile’s Rosé California Sparkling Wine, Charmat method, $15
NV Emile’s Grand Cuvee California Champagne, Charmat method, $17
NV Almond Champagne, Charmat method, $18
Kathryn Kennedy Winery
The Brut is reminiscent of Champagne and is yeasty, briochey and honeyed; it has nutty, caramel and marzipan flavors. Cuvee Twenty-Seven honors winemaker Marty Mathis’ mother Kathryn Kennedy, who was born in 1927, a time when Champagne was all the rage. The 2005 is Marty’s last vintage, one he calls his best ever, and he is still selling it. One sip takes you to Champagne, with toasty and yeasty aromas, almond marzipan, candied ginger and zesty lemon curd flavors, all with an elegant, creamy caramel finish.
2005 Cuvee Twenty-Seven Blanc de Blanc, traditional method, $45
NV Brut, traditional method, $45
Left Bend Winery
Gary Robinson makes two Fiz Nat Syrah rosés. Both are vibrant blood orange in color with fresh strawberry and blood orange citrus aromas and flavors. The Santa Cruz Mountains wine is more tart, earthier and hazy; the Arroyo Seco wine is floral, fruitier and fuller-bodied.
Robinson suggests getting the bottles extremely well-chilled, standing upright, before opening, and popping the crown cap over a sink. Pét-nats have a tendency to foam over when opened.
2018 Fiz Nat Sparkling Rosé of Syrah, Santa Cruz Mountains, pét-nat method, $28
2018 Fiz Nat Sparkling Rosé of Syrah, Arroyo Seco, pét-nat method, $28
Sarah’s Vineyard
This coppery salmon pink sparkler is redolent of peach and apricot, tart on the tongue but has a soft finish.
NV Brut Sparkling Wine, traditional method, $28
NV Brut Sparkling Rosé, traditional method, $32
Seeker Vineyard
Karen and Randy Seeker are sparkling wine newcomers. They produce a traditional-method bubbly at San Martin’s Seeker Vineyards. Winemaker Randy makes a 100% Chardonnay extra dry traditional-method wine, which is even drier than the more common brut (dry) style. It has toasty aromas with lemon and hazelnut notes and a creamy finish.
NV Blanc de Blanc Extra Dry, traditional method, $28
Waxwing Wines
This tart and crisp bubbly is similar to German sparkling Rieslings and is fresh, floral with green apple and Asian pear notes. À la volée is French for “on the fly,” a fitting name for a Waxwing wine.
