Full Belly Files | When Red Grapes Become White Wines

By Matt Kettmann Wed Jan 22, 2025 | 10:00am

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[Click to enlarge]: Red cinsaut (or cinsault) grapes on their way to becoming a white wine at Thacher Winery.

Even people relatively well-versed in oenology are sometimes shocked to learn that red grapes can make white wines. That’s because the flesh of most grapes is light in color, even when the skins are dark red. (The exclusions are “teinturier” varieties, which sport red flesh to match their skins; the only example you find much around California is alicante bouschet.)

This mystery vanishes a bit when you realize a solid tranche of sparkling wines, whether from Champagne or elsewhere, are “Blanc de Noirs,” in which the red pinot noir grape is crushed before the skins add color, thereby making a white bubbly.

In theory, this technique of getting pale juice from red grapes can be applied widely. But the economics — in which red wines sell for more than white wines across the board — don’t really support making that move often.

There is a tiny tradition of doing so up in Oregon, where some estates have for years turned pinot noir into “pinot noir blanc” — which is not pinot blanc, a grape all its own. I recall my first taste of such was more than a decade ago from a bottle of Anne Amie, poured at the World of Pinot Noir. (That event returns to the Bacara at the end of February, if you haven’t heard.) I found the sip fascinating, both as someone who seeks new flavors and a journalist who’s constantly in search of a distinct storyline to tell.

So I got very excited when Coby Parker-Garcia of El Lugar Wines started producing a pinot noir blanc from Central Coast grapes a number of years back. He did so despite the economic disadvantage, and the wines have always been exciting and unique, somewhere between chardonnay and, well, perhaps pinot blanc or gris. (Here are reviews I did from the 2022 and 2021 vintages; the oldest I could easily find was 2016.) I have bottles from each vintage he’s made still in my collection, and would like to pop them all at once to see their evolution some day.

A couple of other pinot noir blancs have popped up here and there since then. But why not other grapes?

Sherman Thacher of Thacher Winery in Paso Robles was wondering the same thing. In 2023, he decided to answer that question by producing a white cinsaut (or cinsault, depending on your dictionary), which was just released a couple months ago.

His history with the grape goes back to 2015, when he made a traditional red version. “We were instantly impressed,” said Thacher, who’s a former brewer from Ojai’s famed Thacher family but himself a graduate of Midland School in Los Olivos. “It is an elegant, fresh varietal with a broad range of flavors.”

He’s made a light red cinsaut (just around 12 percent alc.) ever since, and added a rosé in 2018, again “enamored” by the results. (The 2023 version is just 10.3 percent alc.) Cinsaut also finds its way into sparkling wine that Thacher produces, alongside grenache and viognier.

Why go white? “After some very successful rosé vintages, and as our estate block matured, we decided to try a direct press version, a still blanc de noir,” said Thacher. “Cinsault can carry a large crop, and we have always been impressed with its ability to produce a full, satiating mouthfeel at low brix.”

The inaugural cinsaut blanc is a hit. Just 11.9 percent, it’s a conversation starter at the least, and a crisp quaffer for warm days or even fireplace nights. In my review for Wine Enthusiast, I gave the wine 92 points as well as a “Hidden Gem” designation.

“This is a brilliant take on the light red grape cinsaut, pressing it right after harvest to make a crisp white wine,” I wrote. “Aromas of tart lime peel, kiwi, and stonefruit lead from the nose into a very tense palate of melon rind and brisk Asian pear flavors.”

He only made 75 cases, but it looks like there are some left. Click here to pick up your own.

Edible Highlights of June Mountain Trip

Last weekend, my son and I joined Coyote Dave and his son on a quick weekend jaunt to June Mountain, where the snow was not great but just fine, and there wasn’t a lift line to be seen from Friday to Sunday. Given that my enjoyment levels precipitously decline when faced with waiting in lines, I was able to stay properly stoked the whole time.

On the way there, as is often the case, fast food actually makes the most sense. So McDonald’s it was, and it was certainly better than the sparse Vagabond Inn breakfast in Bishop we scarfed the next morning before hitting the slopes.

[Click to enlarge]: From left: Our June Lake cabin; the chile relleno from Balanced Rock Grill & Cantina

Lunch at June Mountain was solid. My turkey BLT featured thick slabs of roasted bird and ample crisps of pig, and the bloody marys worked their magic well. I’m also a big fan of brown ales when in ski conditions, almost as if those roasty flavors only soothe my palate when there’s a specific chill to the mountain air. June Lake Brewing’s Deer Beer Brown did that trick.

We made pasta at our little cabin in downtown June Lake that night, and brought our own sandwiches for Saturday’s skiing. We rewarded the kids with ice cream at Local Scoop that afternoon, and asked the proprietor which was the best place to eat in town. “Whichever one is open,” was his wry response.

We struck a bit of Mexican gold by stumbling into the Balanced Rock Grill & Cantina. My chile relleno was fantastic, as were the nachos, tacos, and taquitos around the table, thanks largely to the homemade tortillas. It might have been the margaritas, but Dave and I were pretty effusive in our praise for surprising us with such excellent food in a tiny mountain town.

The line forms early outside of Copper Top BBQ in Big Pine.

The last highlight was on our way home, when we stopped for lunch at the overflowing Copper Top BBQ in Big Pine on our way home down Highway 395. We smartly ordered in advance, as the lines were snaking underneath the sweet smoke when we arrived. A big burger, pork ribs, sliders, pulled pork mac and cheese, and a vegetarian chili all hit high marks. They’ve got a lot of seasonings, smoked meats, and more for sale to go as well, so that’s likely to become a must-stop for future Owens Valley adventures.