by Gabe Saglie, Senior Editor, Travelzoo
published in the Santa Barbara News-Press on 4/9/16
The vibe in the Wine Saloon is a real throwback: old-fashioned
swinging doors, wooden stools at a wooden bar and dim lighting on rustic décor.
A huge moose head keeps watch from
above.
The hundreds of dollar bills
tacked up high on the ceiling are calling cards from thirsty patrons who’ve ponied
up for a drink in the past.
This watering hole feels right at home in The 1880 Union
Hotel, a 14-room landmark that’s hosted everyone from gunslingers of yesteryear
to newlyweds of today. And it’s also
right at home in Los Alamos, a one-exit rural township in northern Santa
Barbara County, on the way up to Santa Maria.
This country enclave is still very much a snapshot of slower, quieter
days. But it’s also becoming a foodie
haven now, with a slow proliferation of bakeries, eateries and tasting rooms
that are helping Los Alamos dust off its image, even if just a little bit.
As I step up to the bar, I’m greeted by Jami Way.
The younger sister of actor Kurt Russell is
chatty and charming.
With references to
“Kurt, “Goldie” and “Kate,” she happily engages the patrons and looky-loos who
pop in after me – the word is out that the wines of Russell and actress Kate
Hudson are poured here.
But she has no
need to let on that she’s part of their family.
“This is actually the perfect place to feature Kurt’s
wines,” Jami tells me, referencing her sibling’s love for Western American history.
This setting’s unassuming air, she adds,
mirrors his wine project’s “genuine” approach.
Kurt Russell’s GoGi label, inspired by his childhood
nickname (and pronounced GO-Ghee), launched in 2008, the culmination of the
actor’s own decades-long love for fine wine.
After many visits to vineyards in Europe, the elegant, delicate,
balanced wines of Burgundy had become his own palate’s holy grail. So when opportunity knocked a decade ago to
turn appreciation into vocation, he took the challenge. Russell partnered with Peter and Rebecca Work
of Ampelos Cellars in Santa Barbara’s Sta. Rita Hills, which had recently
become the first vineyard in the country to be triple-certified organic,
biodynamic and sustainable.
Russell was drawn by “their old school way of making pinot”
and a “mindset that takes you back to a time when making wine was hands on,
with as little machinery as possible.”
The actor, who spoke with me from the Colorado set of director Quentin
Tarantino’s upcoming The Hateful Eight, has called himself the Works’ “apprentice”
ever since.
While Work makes the GoGi wines, Russell’s personal stamp,
especially on the pinot, is indisputable.
“He prunes and works harvest, he does punch downs, he works the bottling
line, he even waxes the tops of the bottles,” Jami tells me.
“He’s obsessed.”
The Wine Saloon, a partnership between Russell and the
hotel’s owners, pours only three labels: GoGi, Ampelos and Hudson Bellamy. The latter is the pet project of actress Kate
Hudson, the daughter of actress and longtime Russell love interest Goldie Hawn
(Russell calls Hudson “my daughter”), who was inspired by GoGi to start her own
wine. Work crafts these, too.
Jami Way, the business manager for her family’s labels and
the head barkeep at the Saloon, calls the tasting flight, “La Familia.” Very apropos.
The lineup costs $15, with wines by the glass ($8-$15) and bottle ($25-$75)
available for purchase, too. The Saloon
is open Friday from Noon to 10pm and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5pm.
I begin with the Hudson Bellamy sauvignon blanc, made from
Crown Point Vineyard fruit in the Happy Canyon AVA.
Aged in stainless steel, it’s lively and
fruit-driven, with a mid-palate richness and a clean and lingering finish.
Proceeds from this wine go to a children’s
charity established by Goldie Hawn.
The 2013 Hudson Bellamy Rosé of Syrah, also
all-stainless-steel fermented, features a strawberry nose and classic syrah
character on the tongue.
Russell’s 2012 GoGi Chardonnay is dubbed “Goldie,” an homage
to his sweetheart. Oak aged, it displays
a vibrant color, a butterscotch nose and a silky supple mouth feel. A variation from the recent onslaught of today’s
crisper, unoaked chards, this wine is delicious.
The 2011 GoGi Pinot Noir is Russell’s baby, the product of
meticulous blending by the actor, himself, of myriad pinot barrels crafted by
Work.
“I’ve been able to formulate my
own taste,” Russell told me, “and it’s blending that is the most challenging
and yet the most rewarding.”
His sister
adds, as she pours for me, “Kurt always had a great nose, even as a small
kid.”
The aroma on this wine screams
berries, and flavors of earth and raspberry give way to a spice rack mid-palate
and a delightful sour cherry aftertaste.
Plenty of acidity keeps flavors bright.
This wine is a wonderful tip of the hat to its Burgundian inspirations.
The name on the pinot label changes with each vintage but is
always a tribute to one of Russell’s family members. He called the 2011 “Angelbaby,” the playful
nickname he uses for Jami. Earlier
vintages, with names like Bosty Boy for son Boston and Jillybean for sister
Jill, are sold out.
Work’s own 2011 Ampelos Syrache is a 72-28 blend of the
Rhone grapes, syrah and grenache.
Dubbed
“Sigma,” it exudes both the dark fruit earthiness of its primary ingredient and
the bounciness of its sister blender.
The
2011 Ampelos Syrah, labeled “Gamma,” is rich, intense and exotic, with chocolate
and dark berry overtones and a white cracked pepper backbone.
Both wines are made entirely from grapes off
the 82-acre Ampelos Vineyard.
To finish off, the Ameplos 2010 Late Harvest Viognier is a
treat. It’s called “Epsilon,” and the
bees’ wax that coats the top of the bottle is actually a clue: the wine inside,
with 5% residual sugar, is deliciously honeyed.
Hungry tasters at the bar can order right off the hotel’s
four-page menu.
“The Argentinian
empanadas are fantastic,” Jami tells a pair of sisters from Goleta who’ve escaped
to Los Alamos for the day and who’ve ponied up to the bar, too.
“And the chili here is great."
Kurt Russell is known to make regular appearances behind the
Wine Saloon bar. “Their schedule is
crazy, but he might be here tomorrow,” Jami tells me as I get up from the
bar. And I can’t help but tip my
invisible cowboy hat her way as I take my leave through the swinging doors.
The Wine Saloon experience comes to Bacara Resort & Spa
next week as Kurt Russell headlines the 2
nd Annual Santa Barbara
Food & Wine Weekend.
A four-day
affair that includes classes, tastings, and a comprehensive array of other
foodie experiences, it features a Grand Dinner Saturday night, April 18
th, with wines by Gogi, Hudson Bellamy and Ampelos.
Check out
BacaraCulinaryWeekend.com.
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