2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño, Terra Alta Vineyard, Clements Hills, Lodi
Tasting Notes
This delicious Albariño has a beautiful white-gold shimmery hue as you swirl it in your glass. It has deep and intense aromas of tropical fruit, white peach skin, Granny Smith apple, and zesty orange peel. Its dramatic citrus flavors that lead into secondary flavors of underripe pineapple, banana, lychee, and orange liqueur. It has a long and briny finish that leaves you wanting another sip.
Suggested Pairing: Sea Bass with lemon wine sauce.
Our Story
Markus and Liz Bokisch have been producing award-winning Spanish varietals since the early 2000s. With hearts and heritage of Spain, their inspiration to produce Spanish varietal wines in California began by directly importing bud wood from select vineyards in Spain, thus creating Bokisch Vineyards, nestled in the Clements Hills of the Lodi AVA. They began making wine from their estate-grown and organically farmed fruit in 2000.
Our Vineyards
Our Terra Alta Vineyard is the beautiful home of our winery facility and is nestled in the toe of the Sierra Foothills. Featuring 80 acres of redding gravelly clay loam, this is the organically certified home of our plantings of Albariño, Garnacha, and Graciano. Markus planted this parcel in 1996 because its climate and soil were almost identical to the vineyards he farmed in the Vaca Mountains of Napa Valley. Those vineyards, like our Terra Alta, are perfect for Mediterranean varieties.
Specs
Varietal: 100% Albariño
Clone Selection: Rias Baixas - Massal Selection by Markus Bokisch
Appellation: Clements Hills
Aging: 5 months in stainless steel
Soil Types: Redding Gravelly Clay Loam
Alcohol: 12%
Production: 1000 cases
Winemaker: Elyse Perry
What’s Included
4-bottles:
4x 2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño, Terra Alta Vineyard, Clements Hills, Lodi Case:
12x 2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño, Terra Alta Vineyard, Clements Hills, Lodi
Markus and Liz Bokisch having been producing award-winning Spanish varietals since the early 2000s. With hearts and heritage of Spain, their inspiration to produce Spanish varietal wines began, creating Bokisch Vineyards, nestled in the Clements Hills of the Lodi AVA. Liz & Markus met at UC Davis and moved to Spain in 1992 traveling across the country in their 1967, blue VW Bus. Markus worked in the famous Cava producing town of Sant Saduri d’Anoia in the wine business, and Liz taught English classes. They soon fell in love with Spanish foods and wine and were determined to try producing domestic Spanish varietal wines upon their return to California.
In 1995 they purchased their Terra Alta Vineyards property in the Clements Hills, and in 1998 they imported budwood from specially selected vineyards in Spain. They planted their Las Cerezas Vineyard of Spanish varietals with one acre each of Albariño, Tempranillo and Graciano.
They began making wine from their estate grown and organically farmed fruit in 2000. The Bokisch Vineyards label currently produces nine Spanish varieties including Garnacha Blanca, Verdejo, Garnacha and Monastrell. In 2012 they began experimenting with other unique small lot production by introducing the Tizona label which produces varieties such as Malbec, Petit Verdot, Old Vine Zin and specialty blends.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, LA, ME, MD, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Preliminary substitute lab rat report here: I’m traveling, so I asked a friend (who is not that much of a wine drinker) to taste and give a review. Mercifully, the bottle is a screw cap closure and he left half in my fridge. So I’ll give you my review tomorrow when I get home and get to try it. For now, however, here’s what he gave me —- very much FWIW.
—————
I’ve challenged myself to not cheat on this review. I’ll give you bullet points and you can put them together in an orderly manner.
It’s white, dry and gets me buzzed. That works, right?
White, dry and reasonably acidic. It has an initial bite.
Some citrus-y fruit tones but my palate can’t discern.
A long finish that decreases in acidic intensity and becomes more pleasant. (the after taste is actually better than the drink)
My wife’s review:
“This tastes like our basement floor.”
———-
I asked him some followup questions and learned that he found this rather acidic and if drinking white wine would prefer something like a Chardonnay. He guessed it would retail for 14-18.
I’m a biased source in the opposite direction (I happen to LOVE Albariño) so I’ll do my best to give a counterpoint sometime tomorrow.
@jakezim actually for a spontaneous review from a chard-drinker (Not that it’s a terrible thing, but…) it seems a fairly good review. The basement floor in particular gets me interested.
@jakezim@klezman@pmarin
Assuming that the basement floor is made from concrete? If you have ever worked with concrete or have a concrete patio or floor as I have I can imagine it and might not be a bad thing! Go smell your concrete people!
A little blurb about the wine and winery from Please The Palate (?) here
The wine note from the article which appears to be Oct '22:
“…The Terra Alta Albariño is the most Spanish in style. The bud for the vineyards came from Rias Baixes where there are granitic soils. The Markus’ found similar soils and conditions in the Terra Alta Vineyard. The wine is 100% Albariño, fermented in stainless steel, and does not undergo malolactic fermentation. The wine is very aromatic with hints of tangerine, lemon rind, stone fruits, green apple, and minerals and tingling acidity…”
@rjquillin@jakezim@pjmarin Well I was going to say that I’ve never tasted my basement floor…but then there was that bottle of Lynch Bages my bride dropped…and oh, wayyyyy back in the day, dropped something that wasn’t exactly wine or liquid for that matter but we did try and recover…
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño - $35 = 21.20%
Any idea when these would actually ship? I’ve learned you can’t use the dates in the listing. In truth it can be 1-8 weeks it seems.
As we get more into travel season, this affects more people. I can use the UPS hold at store option but that only gets you one week max, which might not be enough depending on timing. And I’ve learned that when stuff gets shipped back to WCC, you do NOT get credit to your account. I hope that at least folks there (Or at UPS) have nice parties with the wine I paid for but never received. (yes my fault I wasn’t there to sign, or sometimes I was, and UPS driver said nobody home while I was 20 feet away in the kitchen, no headphones or loud music, then get the email about couldn’t deliver)
@pmarin Your claim is that wine was shipped back to WCC (apparently more than once) and never credited to your account - a rather serious allegation demanding at least some substantiation.
What response did you get from UPS when you complained?
@pmarin@rpstrong If using UPS My Choice premium or whatever they call it, you can change the delivery date instead of using hold at location. I’ve used it several times when the 7 day hold at location wasn’t long enough. So far so good.
OK, I’m back with some personal rattage. Our friend left us half the bottle, which has been sitting in our fridge for 72 hours; we just got to taste it tonight.
Both of us get peach and green apple on the front. Mineral / vegetal notes secondarily. First sip is surprisingly fruity but it feels progressively more bone-dry as you enjoy a little more. Put differently, it reads like New Zealand savvy b at the beginning, but it changes its tone significantly as you settle into it.
Try as I may, I do not detect even faint notes of basement floor. Perhaps I need to go taste my friend’s basement? If it’s like this wine, it’s probably delicious.
Like I said above, I’m a biased source since I love Albariño. But if you like a nice dry minerally wine, with a little pop of fruit here and there, this is definitely your baby. Get a dozen oysters and pop it open. Sounds like summer to me!
Thanks to Alice and the Casemates team for the opportunity to rat again! A special thanks for my very own rat glass:)
The wine arrived on Wednesday, allowing for a two-day rest. I am familiar with this Spanish grape and have enjoyed it’s Pinot Grigio like refreshing fruit and dry finish. I’m excited to see how a California winery does with this grape.
I’ve put a nice chill on the bottle. It is a screw top which makes little difference to me.
I don’t get much on the nose, I have to try very hard to get some faint florals. The palate is a nice refreshing citrus and green apple. The finish is a long burst of more citrus with some pineapple fruit to take some of the edge off the citrus for a more satisfying finish. I see this as a summer sipper if your into citrus. It’s more citrus and less fruity than its Italian cousin. To me it’s closer to a big New Zealand sauvignon blanc. Not necessarily a bad thing!
To me grabbing a case would come down to price point. I’m sure Casemates will make it compelling.
Excellent rattage here. I’m intrigued, and as a NZ SB lover (our trip there - and to the Marlborough region in particular - 8 years ago was ) I love those comparisons. We’re low on whites and this feels like the right wine at the right time for our palates.
Curious to see how this compares to our basement floor.
2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño, Terra Alta Vineyard, Clements Hills, Lodi
Tasting Notes
Our Story
Our Vineyards
Specs
What’s Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$294.00/Case for 12x 2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño, Terra Alta Vineyard, Clements Hills, Lodi at Bokisch Vineyards
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, LA, ME, MD, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 3
2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño
4 bottles for $54.99 $13.75/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $129.99 $10.83/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
Is this the same Markus we met on the 2018 tour?
Preliminary substitute lab rat report here: I’m traveling, so I asked a friend (who is not that much of a wine drinker) to taste and give a review. Mercifully, the bottle is a screw cap closure and he left half in my fridge. So I’ll give you my review tomorrow when I get home and get to try it. For now, however, here’s what he gave me —- very much FWIW.
—————
I’ve challenged myself to not cheat on this review. I’ll give you bullet points and you can put them together in an orderly manner.
My wife’s review:
“This tastes like our basement floor.”
———-
I asked him some followup questions and learned that he found this rather acidic and if drinking white wine would prefer something like a Chardonnay. He guessed it would retail for 14-18.
I’m a biased source in the opposite direction (I happen to LOVE Albariño) so I’ll do my best to give a counterpoint sometime tomorrow.
@jakezim actually for a spontaneous review from a chard-drinker (Not that it’s a terrible thing, but…) it seems a fairly good review. The basement floor in particular gets me interested.
@jakezim @pmarin Yeah, what does that mean??
@jakezim @klezman @pmarin
and might not be a bad thing! Go smell your concrete people!
Assuming that the basement floor is made from concrete? If you have ever worked with concrete or have a concrete patio or floor as I have I can imagine it
A little blurb about the wine and winery from Please The Palate (?) here
The wine note from the article which appears to be Oct '22:
“…The Terra Alta Albariño is the most Spanish in style. The bud for the vineyards came from Rias Baixes where there are granitic soils. The Markus’ found similar soils and conditions in the Terra Alta Vineyard. The wine is 100% Albariño, fermented in stainless steel, and does not undergo malolactic fermentation. The wine is very aromatic with hints of tangerine, lemon rind, stone fruits, green apple, and minerals and tingling acidity…”
fwiw
@kaolis
must be that basement floor
@rjquillin @jakezim @pjmarin Well I was going to say that I’ve never tasted my basement floor…but then there was that bottle of Lynch Bages my bride dropped…and oh, wayyyyy back in the day, dropped something that wasn’t exactly wine or liquid for that matter but we did try and recover…
@kaolis oh, jeeze…funny.
@jakezim @kaolis @rjquillin
Lol!
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2021 Bokisch Vineyards Albariño - $35 = 21.20%
Any idea when these would actually ship? I’ve learned you can’t use the dates in the listing. In truth it can be 1-8 weeks it seems.
As we get more into travel season, this affects more people. I can use the UPS hold at store option but that only gets you one week max, which might not be enough depending on timing. And I’ve learned that when stuff gets shipped back to WCC, you do NOT get credit to your account. I hope that at least folks there (Or at UPS) have nice parties with the wine I paid for but never received. (yes my fault I wasn’t there to sign, or sometimes I was, and UPS driver said nobody home while I was 20 feet away in the kitchen, no headphones or loud music, then get the email about couldn’t deliver)
@pmarin Your claim is that wine was shipped back to WCC (apparently more than once) and never credited to your account - a rather serious allegation demanding at least some substantiation.
@pmarin @rpstrong If using UPS My Choice premium or whatever they call it, you can change the delivery date instead of using hold at location. I’ve used it several times when the 7 day hold at location wasn’t long enough. So far so good.
Wine Enthusiast rated the 2019 as 90 points and the 2020 as 89 points.
I love that we’re starting to see some Spanish varietals on here. Just in time for warmer weather. In for a case.
/giphy flabby-simple-iguana
OK, I’m back with some personal rattage. Our friend left us half the bottle, which has been sitting in our fridge for 72 hours; we just got to taste it tonight.
Both of us get peach and green apple on the front. Mineral / vegetal notes secondarily. First sip is surprisingly fruity but it feels progressively more bone-dry as you enjoy a little more. Put differently, it reads like New Zealand savvy b at the beginning, but it changes its tone significantly as you settle into it.
Try as I may, I do not detect even faint notes of basement floor. Perhaps I need to go taste my friend’s basement? If it’s like this wine, it’s probably delicious.
Like I said above, I’m a biased source since I love Albariño. But if you like a nice dry minerally wine, with a little pop of fruit here and there, this is definitely your baby. Get a dozen oysters and pop it open. Sounds like summer to me!
Thanks to Alice and the Casemates team for the opportunity to rat again! A special thanks for my very own rat glass:)
The wine arrived on Wednesday, allowing for a two-day rest. I am familiar with this Spanish grape and have enjoyed it’s Pinot Grigio like refreshing fruit and dry finish. I’m excited to see how a California winery does with this grape.
I’ve put a nice chill on the bottle. It is a screw top which makes little difference to me.
I don’t get much on the nose, I have to try very hard to get some faint florals. The palate is a nice refreshing citrus and green apple. The finish is a long burst of more citrus with some pineapple fruit to take some of the edge off the citrus for a more satisfying finish. I see this as a summer sipper if your into citrus. It’s more citrus and less fruity than its Italian cousin. To me it’s closer to a big New Zealand sauvignon blanc. Not necessarily a bad thing!
To me grabbing a case would come down to price point. I’m sure Casemates will make it compelling.
Excellent rattage here. I’m intrigued, and as a NZ SB lover (our trip there - and to the Marlborough region in particular - 8 years ago was
) I love those comparisons. We’re low on whites and this feels like the right wine at the right time for our palates.
Curious to see how this compares to our basement floor.
/giphy fastidious-fresh-rum
