Tatomer, Kick-On Ranch Riesling, Clone 239, Santa Barbara County, California, 2020

Austrian-influenced, Tatomer is the new face of California's Riesling potential. These are bone-dry, thirst-slaking wines, edgy and lean. The Westerly winds buffet Kick-On Ranch near Los Alamos, creating wines of wonderful verve and complexity: Savoury aromatics, dried thyme, crushed chalk and flint. The palate is edgy and bright, with streaks of wet slate, savoury herbs, beeswax and lemon zest. The finish zips with bright acid.