CleverRoot

6 0 | t h e c l e v e r r o o t 6 0 | t h e c l e v e r r o o t "Do I contradict myself? Very well, then, I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes." Walt Whitman's personification of America in his poem Song of Myself could easily be applied to California's Central Coast. As the state's largest AVA, it runs about 250 miles from north to south to encompass more than 6 million acres and 40 sub-AVAs—and a recent tour of three E. & J. Gallo properties in the region illustrated the challenge of encapsulating it in all its vastness and diversity. The contrasts are great: the palm-lined shores of the American Riviera (as Santa Barbara is known) versus the windswept sea cliffs of Santa Cruz, ranching versus fishing culture, the coastal emphasis on Burgundian vari- etals versus the inland penchant for Rhône and even Bordeaux varietals. Because of this, Central Coast winemakers sometimes face an identity cri- sis, says Bridlewood's Kamee Knutson, noting that with such a wide range of options, they must ask themselves, "What do we want to be?" On the other hand, they relish the opportunity to explore the appellation's myriad facets. As Matt Stone of Edna Valley Vineyard puts it, "I like to think of the Central Coast as one big vineyard." A ST DY IN C NTRASTS by Ruth Tobias / photos by Élan Villamor TOURING THE DIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA'S CENTRAL COAST En route to Edna Valley Vineyard in a prime-condition 1969 Buick Electra. For Talbott Vineyards' David Coventry, winemaking means reaching for the stars: "If I make the wine of my dreams, I have not dreamed big enough."

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