Wines Aged in Local History

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Wine Futures: The Vinuous Rite of Spring
March 30 2006

"This may be your best discovery of the tasting. The 2004 merlot, from Carhartt's estate vineyard, is its best yet: all inky and dark black fruits, as well as rich, full-bodied and tongue tingling with a great, silk mouth feel. With their 2004 syrah, you can tell, just from the nose, that this is a robust and explosive wine. Plum, cherry, spice and pepper are there but more importantly, a great depth is present too." - Dennis Schaefer

Grape-Nutz Wine Review – 2006 Santa Barbara Futures

Eric Anderson, publisher of Grape-Nutz.com reports on the Futures event:
Overall impressions: as expected, the wines were largely excellent. The 2004 vintage has been referred to as "challenging" by many, and I was interested to see (and taste) if these wines came across as riper than usual - one of the fears about the heat spikes of the vintage. Thankfully, none of the wines seemed over-the-top, and in fact all were quite balanced.

Regarding Carhartt wines, he notes: “this Merlot could put a lot of Cabs to shame. Where's the beef? Right here - with both of these wines.” Read his full review here

Looking to the future(s) for inspiration
Schaefer On Wine
March 31st, 2005

Carhartt – “Very simply, their 2003 Merlot is the best there is in the county and their 2003 Syrah is even better than last year’s. Make it a point to visit the tasting table of Brooke and Mike Carhartt and/or put your order in for these hand-crafted wines.”
From Dennis Schaefer’s review of the Wine Cask Futures Tasting held March 19)

Grape-Nutz come to Visit!

Eric Anderson and his group of other ‘Nutz come out to the winery for a tour and a taste. “Very polished, with a beautiful vanilla and toast accent to the dark cherry scent. Rich on the palate, chewy mouthfeel, long smooth finish”, says Eric about the 2002 Merlot. Read all about their visit by clicking here.

Wine & Food Notes by Michael O’Shea

The Carhartt’s were pouring their 2001 Syrah, Santa Ynez Valley, an elegant Rhône-style wine offering smoky, concentrated fruit aromas and flavors with a hint of anise and a velvety texture. Their 2001 Merlot is a “C” wine – clean, complex, concentrated, cherry, cedar, cinnamon, cardamom and chocolate. Buy at least two bottles. Drink one now and age the other one for a few years. (Yeah right! As if you’ll be able to resist drinking it!)

Wine Enthusiast, March 2004

90 points 2001 Syrah
A dark full-bodied and very extracted wine with powerful fruit flavors. The currant, blackberry, plum and cherry flavors have a peppery note, especially in the aromas, and the texture is dry and lush. This young wine has lots of baby fat, but is charming now for its opulence.

Wine Country Living, Jan/Feb 2004

Outstanding Santa Ynez Syrah
Syrah, 2001 – 93 Points. Authentic, Rhône-style Syrah that offers exotic smoked meat aromas, super-concentrated fruit flavors and a velvety, firm texture. Has distinctive, layered cherry, blackberry and anise flavors and a long lingering finish. Best now through 2008.

Matt Kramer on Wine, The Year in Wine, December 2003

Golden State Candidates
Carhartt Vineyard – This small family winery in Santa Barbara County’s Santa Ynez Valley produces very low yields but beautiful, precise wines. Especially tasty are the 2001 Syrah and Merlot.

Patterson’s California Beverage Journal, October 2003, Senior Editor Meridith May

Brooke Carhartt, a truly lovely human being with a soft, angelic aura, “does the chemistry”. She and husband Mike are the winemakers, while Mike also wears the hat of grower, salesman and vineyard manager. “Nature does so much itself”, Brooke says modestly of the wine which is elegantly styled. The Carhartt 2001 Syrah is not unlike a Northern Rhône red, with finesse of a different animal. It’s abundant with roses and luscious fruit, landing on a white pepper finish. The Merlot is as elegant as Brooke, bright and refined, its structured engine purring. Both wines are powerful and complex, still maintaining an elegance that capture the attention of this writer as well as other journalists, who advise you put an asterisk next to the name Carhartt. “The wines are a total labor of love,” admit the couple, who fittingly emblazon their label with a heart.

Santa Barbara Beacon, October 16, 2003

Once Upon a Vine: Celebrating Fall Harvest by Gabe Saglie
I made it to the bottom of the hill to a smiling Brooke Carhartt. She and husband Mike were sharing some of their acclaimed wines. In fact, the Wine Spectator just a few weeks ago gave them a very enthusiast write-up. I was anxious to try their dark, soft, voluptuous Syrah. That’s the one local wine my new bride and I took on our honeymoon to the Bahamas, and it was time to treat myself to it again. “There is a wonderful hint of chocolate here”, my friend Roys said as he enjoyed his second sip. “Where can I get this down in Ventura County?” And so the word spreads.

The Independent, October 16, 2003

New Kids on the Vine; A Celebration of Harvest by Michael Cervin
...Carhartt is a small, family operation. Michael and Brooke Carhartt make their own wine, on their own property, in their own facility, and they love it. Their 2001 Merlot and 2001 Syrah are both compelling wines, fully ripe and very well made. I was fortunate to try their 2002 Merlot and Syrah, still in barrels. They both show great promise and will be released next year. They use only French oak to age their wines, are fierce about hands-on management of their own vineyard.

Wine Spectator, September 25, 2003

The Pull of Place by Matt Kramer
Santa Ynez Valley..sees its future in creating Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Cabernet Franc and Grenache. Wineries such as Carhartt, Tensley, Stolpman and Beckmen are issuing superb Syrah. There’s great Grenache, Merlot (look for Carhartt) and Cabernet Franc as well as Bordeaux-type blends.

Santa Barbara Beacon

Once Upon a Vine, by Gabe Saglie
From lessons learned about wine while on his honeymoon: But on our last honeymoon night, we sat at a table for three: Renee, me and the Carhartt Syrah. “A friend of ours made this,” we bragged to our waiter. And when the rich currant colors filled our glasses and the cherry aromas swam through our nostrils, and the fleshy, fruity flavors gleaned across our palates, and lingered there, we smiled. It proved a perfect match to Renee’s beef medallions, my honey-glazed duck breast and the bowl of coconut ice cream with chocolate sauce we shared. This was a wine worth waiting for.

Tom Hill – The Tom Hill Archives

2000 Syrah – Very dark color, lovely blackberry/Syrah/chocolaty pungent/toasty / oak quite spicy/fragrant nose; softer very spicy/ perfumed pungent toast/Fr oak rather chocolaty/ripe blackberry/Syrah/meaty flavor; long spicy meaty/Syrah/blackberry/chocolaty some pungent/smokey/Fr oak finish w/some tannins; needs a year or two; very attractive spyc/meaty Syrah at a fair price.

The Wine Room, Irvine CA

2001 Syrah – the farmers have triumphed! The Carhartt’s bring forth one of the most striking wines ever to come out of the Santa Ynez Valley! This is one stud of a bottle-o-wine …there are no feminine attributes! Once your nostrils sense the boisterous blackberry jam, wily bramble, white pepper, roasted/creamy vanilla, sweet leather and toasted oak..you won’t need a glass.. pour it on any pore on the body. The wine reeks carnality! Juicy and very rotund, but equally balanced, a phenomenal accomplishment

Wine Cask, Winter 2001 Employee Picks

Doug Margerum – 1999 Carhartt Merlot –“ Intense, dark and one of the best Merlots made in California”

Vinous Ravings, Bob Wesley – Lazy Acres

Mike Carhartt has been selling fruit to Foxen. He decided to make a little wine on his own and when we tasted these with him recently, we had only one question: how soon can you deliver them?
The 2000 Merlot is among the absolute best local ones I’ve tasted, as Mike has eradicated any vegetal character and coaxed lovely fruit flavors like plum and black cherry from his grapes. It could use another year in the bottle to integrated, but it’s plush and dense without being unwieldy.
The 2000 Syrah has deep color, a spicy nose, and a smooth texture. It’s not a heavy wine, but the persistence of the fruit and the feel across the palate combine in unbeatable fashion, and offer a blackberry character that is ripe but dry.