Even though, over the decades, there have been some very fine, sparkling wines produced in California, none has ever had the cachet of Champagne and never has there been a cult-like producer like, say, Jacques Selosse or any of those other unicorn bubbles. That was until Michael Cruse’s much-coveted Ultramarine came along. To this day it remains nearly impossible to source and, when you can find it, it’s usually with a $200+ per bottle price tag on it.

I’ve been lucky enough to have it. Once.

It was, well, as sensational as advertised: As exotic and exciting a sparkling as I’ve ever had from these United States, or maybe anywhere else for that matter. So, I wondered, when a wholesaler friend, Jeff, brought me a bottle of this the other day, what the heck is going on here??? Like Ultramarine, it says Heintz Vineyard on the front and says ‘winemaker Michael Cruse’ on the back. And the bottle itself is the same unique shape as the iconic Ultramarine. I mean, if it looks like an Ultramarine and tastes like an Ultramarine, how can it not be Ultramarine? Well, in fact, it sorta is Ultramarine. It turns out one of the reasons Ultramarine is so damned rare is that it is created from only the middle fraction of the juice that pours from the press as the grapes are crushed. This middle ‘tenderloin’ portion goes off to become America’s most sought after sparkler, while the remaining smaller initial and final fractions are kept separate and turned by Cruse into bubbles just for the grower Charles Heintz, himself.

Like the crazy 2013 vintage from last year, Charles left the 2014 harvest in the bottles on their lees for ten full years before disgorging them this spring and sticking on a label. So now imagine a Late Disgorged version of Ultramarine and you have a sense of what it is we’re offering today: Sensational, cool climate Charles Heintz Vineyard Chardonnay, carefully and lovingly made into sparkling wine by one of deftest hands in the business and aged in the cellar for ten years. Think exotic here: a lush, golden color, an incredible nose of dried honey, lemon crème brûlée, Asian pear, skinned hazelnuts, orange marmalade, cloves and yuzu citrus followed by a palate of stunning freshness and verve, especially considering its age. Never had anything like it! This too, is a unicorn.

So happy we got some again this year. Hey, if you bought some of the 2013, you know what I’m talking about. If you didn’t, my advice is to hit ‘Add to Cart’ right now!

Staff Reviews:

John Rittmaster, Wine Director: Crazy man! This was the most ‘vinous’ wine in the room- a gorgeous white Burgundy, one taster said, with bubbles! If you like your bubbles rich, toasty and delicious, this is your bottle! ***

Frank Rothstein, Minister of Value: Given the size of the line-up, a wine had to have some serious chops to stand out of the crowd; happily the Charles Heintz is a real attention-grabber. Delicious and complex! ***