$16.00 per bottle / $172.80
per case
$13.60 per bottle / $153.60 per
case (Members)
Contra is a wine that reflects the opposite of modern winemaking
sensibilities, meaning wines overworked and amped up, pushed and
prodded into Procrustean palate-numbing sameness. À rebours,
this wine is a contrarian blend of the most old-fangled grape
variety, carignane, from several extremely old (100 year+),
nongrafted, dry-farmed head-trained vineyards, located in Contra
Costa County, and the puer aeternus syrah, young, vibrant,
racy and peppery. Contra is a somewhat contradictory
flashblack/forward to the straightforward, frank wines of yester-
and future-year. A field blend that contravenes contraindicated
convention, with aromas of cherries and licorice, flavorful cassis,
blackberries, and silky tannins. A wine (hardly) contraindicated
for gastronomy, it is above all, contrapuntal.
Tasting Notes
The 2010 Contra unites the flavors of ripe old vine carignane—lots
of dark fruit—plum, black cherry, blackberry with an exceptionally
vibrant, peppery/ minty, smoked meat note deriving from the
brilliant Bien Nacido Vineyard. If this wine were a musical
instrument, it would have to be an oboe, blowing a haunting melody
that is dark and smoky.
Winemaking Notes
Dedicated to producing wines in a more unaffected, hands-off style,
with a particular emphasis on the expression of terroir, or
unique sense of place, we fashioned the 2010 Contra from hand
harvested grapes from the northernmost reaches of the Central Coast
—old vines from Contra Costa County’s Gonsalves Vineyard and its
more Southern climes, Santa Maria Valley’s famed Bien Nacido
Vineyard. Hand sorted, indigenous yeast fermented in individual
lots, extended maceration and 100% ML, before blending to achieve
to a wine that is bursting with life, exuberance and deep
vitality.
Watch the Video: Randall Grahm on the
2009 Contra
Vital Statistics
Varietal Blend: 67.5% carignane, 32.2% syrah, 0.19% grenache, 0.05%
roussanne, 0.04% grenache blanc, 0.02% mourvèdre
Vineyards: Gonsalves, Alamo Creek, Bien Nacido, Alta Loma, Beeswax,
Ca' del Solo
Appellation: Central Coast
Alcohol by Volume: 13.7%
TA: 0.58 g/L
pH: 3.64
Production: 1,989 cases
