On Thursday, March 27th, we are extremely thrilled to welcome a very dear friend, Matt Taylor, here at Chambers. Matt is one of the most talented viticulturist-vigneron of the US and he will present the different projects he is leading.
The Matt Taylor Wines label focuses on sites from around where he was born & raised, and that he planted, grafted and farms on the extreme West Sonoma Coast of California. Cool climate, and tension driven wines of purity and place, Matt dry-farms his narrowly and densely planted sites organically, biodynamically and regeneratively and unabashedly has chosen a style that is counter to the majority of his California peers. He is building structural, 100% whole cluster Pinot Noirs, and making texturally and oxidatively driven acidic white wines with little to no sulfur.
From his CVR vineyard we will taste his newest plantings and first bottlings from the property: the 2023 Sauvignon Blanc and 2023 Chenin Blanc, both from Loire budwood that Matt personally sourced and collected with Pascaline Lepeltier in the Loire Valley and has been propagating on the West Sonoma Coast for almost a decade to get it to this point. These are unreleased and unlabeled wines that Matt is pouring just while he is visiting us in New York.
Ink Grade is a Howell Mountain project in Napa Valley that Matt makes and collaborates on with Master Sommelier Carlton McCoy. The oldest sub-AVA of Napa Valley, this particular site was planted by Joe Heitz of Heitz Cellar in 1990 and has been farmed organically since it was planted and is the largest certified biodynamic vineyard in the Napa Valley. These extremely steep, volcanic, rugged and terraced hillsides on Howell Mountain planted up to 2300 feet in elevation are yielding some of the purest and most elegant wines with tension reminiscent of liquid mentors such as Ridge Monte Bello, Mayacamas, Philip Togni and Dunn.
Matt is without a doubt showing a forgotten expression of Napa and Sonoma, giving this extraordinary potential a new breath of life and energy, writing the present and future of the region.
4 courses, 13 wines. Here is the lineup:
2023 Coleman Sauv Blanc
2019 Cuvee Kaela Pinot Noir
2017 Komorebi Pinot Noir
2021 Andosol Cabernet Sauvignon-Zinfandel
2020 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon
2020 Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon
2022 Lost Clouds Merlot
2022 Prophets Water Cabernet Sauvignon
2022 Buddha’s Belly CaCabernet Sauvignon
2022 Third Circle Cabernet Sauvignon
2022 Ink Grade Sauvignon Blanc
2023 Coleman Chenin
2018 Komorebi Chardonnay
