WTN: Desire Lines Chenin

Desire Lines is one of the labels I've been reading about here & elsewhere for a while, but had never tried, since I wasn't going out of my way to hunt down wine while storage was limited and haphazard. So, one of the too-many ways I celebrated the completion of the cellar was by ordering a mixed case. Last night, we opened the first of three bottles of Desire Lines 2021 Santa Barbara County Chenin Blanc, Cat Canyon Vineyard, "Experimental Series #13." This has a surprising bit of pineapple on the nose, but the palate is definitely not tropical. Instead, this is a lithe and very characteristic green-gold Chenin (I mean that as a metaphor for the taste, not a literal description of the color), suspended between pepper and wax. Medium weight, vibrant without being especially intense, which makes me think this might be for short-to-medium-term drinking only, but that’s fine: it’s delicious, and excellent value, too, at $30. I hope this experiment is repeated, and now I'm eager to crack a Syrah. (Well, maybe not before 8am, but you know what I mean.)

[David M. Bueker]

Glad you enjoyed it. I'm not a Chenin fan, so have not bought that wine from them, but Desire Lines seems to be strong across the range. I think but am not certain that Cody gets some older vine Chenin as well.