The story of Soliloquy, a Sauvignon Blanc clone unique to Flora Springs and a wine of the same name made using those grapes, is a story of family and perseverance. California Wine Month is the perfect time to tell it’s tale. We received this wine as a tasting sample.
Flora Springs Winery is a family-owned winery that sits at the foot of the Mayacamas Mountains in Napa Valley’s St. Helena. The original winery building dates back to before 1900. We told the story of Flora Springs and the Komes and Garvey family, in a prior post.
Flora Springs Soliloquy is named for the proprietary Sauvignon Blanc clone found in the Komes and Garvey family’s Crossroads Vineyard. UC Davis certified that Sauvignon Blanc as unique to the site in the late 1980s and Soliloquy joined the portfolio of Flora Springs wines not long after. But the vines eventually became so damaged by multiple diseases the vineyard had to be removed.
Disappointed, but not deterred, the Komes and Garvey family asked UC Davis to propagate a healthy clone of their Sauvignon Blanc. After three years UC Davis succeeded and several years after that a nursery produced enough scions to plant a vineyard. Three years later Soliloquy Sauvignon Blanc was producing enough fruit to make wine again.
Nat Komes never forgot the taste of that original Soliloquy and made it his mission to recreate the flavor profile of that wine. Nat used a variety of aging vessels and blends and after many trials over multiple vintages he succeeded in recreating the flavors he and his family remember from that original Soliloquy.
The new Soliloquy is a blend of white varieties. The 2018 vintage blends Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Malvasia and Pinot Gris with aging in a combination of concrete egg, French oak barrels, stainless steel barrels and oak puncheons. Only 620 cases were produced. To say this wine is a labor of love is an understatement.
2018 Flora Springs Soliloquy White Wine, Napa Valley — pale yellow in the glass with generous aromas of cut grass, melon and white flowers. Flavors follow with cut grass, peach, dried herbs, citrus, green melon and gravelly minerality. Juicy acidity and citrus pith linger on the finish. 14% abv. SRP $50
Flora Springs has documented the story of Soliloquy with a video, which you can view on the Flora Springs website.
Cheers!
