Florez Wines
Meet the new crew...
Kind of Orange 2020… BUY IT NOW. Skin contact Sauv Blanc that knocked our socks off. The vines are nearly wild, and see attrition every year. We won’t see many more vintages of this stunner.
Free Solo 2020… this crazy co-fermented field blend includes everything from Zinfandel to table grapes. The vineyard is 5th generation owned, was planted in 1920, and is still farmed with the same minimal inputs.
Lavalamp 2020… an interesting wine blurring the line between rosé and light red. The chardonnay was direct pressed, and the Syrah was placed whole cluster to float in the juice, hence the name Lavalamp.
Pegleg 2020… a Jura like Chardonnay made with half foot stomped grapes and half direct press, hence the name — one foot in the barrel and one foot out.
The Pope’s Smoke 2020… a small but mighty Grenache that’s as fresh as it is complex, great chilled.
About the Producer:
Florèz Wines was started by James Jelks in 2017. James grew up in the Santa Cruz area and was schooled in winemaking at nearby UC Davis. He worked in wineries all over the world for 10 years before returning home to make wine in the Santa Cruz area. He is farming some vineyards himself, always dry-farmed, and is also sourcing some fruit from organic and sustainable vineyards. He always works with native yeasts, does not use additives except for a minimal amount of sulfur at bottling, and does not filter the wines.
Read more about James and his fellow young Santa Cruz winemakers in this San Francisco Chronicle article.