Jonata vineyard spotlight
James Suckling walks the Jonata vineyard in Ballard Canyon, the sandy estate where Matt Dees makes El Alma, the Cabernet Franc soul of the ranch.
The market on this bottle
Wine-Searcher tracks this 2021 El Alma. Their published low is $165.30 and the average is $191.04. Our slash is $165, at their published low, against a $210 typical retail.
2021 Jonata 'El Alma de Jonata' Red Wine Ballard Canyon, USA
Matt Dees's Ballard Canyon Cabernet Franc, leather and mint from Careaga sand, a 98-point El Alma at one hundred sixty-five dollars.
The 2021 El Alma is 80 percent Cabernet Franc with 15 percent Merlot and 5 percent Cabernet Sauvignon: black cherry, new leather, mint, and cocoa nibs, now $165.
Cabernet Franc that can do miracles when the year cooperates
El Alma is the soul of Jonata: Cabernet Franc from Careaga sand, not a Loire copy and not a Napa leftover. Matt Dees called 2021 an unforgettable reminder of what the grape can do. Jeb Dunnuck 98, likening it to a great Figeac. Vinous 96. Four hundred twenty-two cases. This is the bottle that makes Ballard Canyon Franc a destination, not a blending part.
The house
Same ranch as La Sangre. Matt Dees since 2004. Sand, marine air, and a dual-language vineyard of Rhone and Bordeaux grapes.
The wine
80% Cabernet Franc, 15% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. 18 months in 50% new French oak. 14.9% ABV. 422 cases.
The scores
Jeb Dunnuck 98. Vinous 96. Perfume, polish, and a finish that stays light on its feet.
The drinker
Leather, mint, cocoa nibs. Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve near 62 F. Rosemary lamb or steak au poivre.
Leather, mint, then satin
Matt Dees: black cherry, new leather, mint, cocoa nibs, rosemary, violet, lavender, black minerals. Jeb Dunnuck: red and black fruits, spring flowers, lead pencil, smoked tobacco. Vinous: dark red fruit, blood orange, cedar, mint, and spice, with Franc aromatics on the finish.
A Cabernet Franc year with plush fruit and stunning complexity. Dees calls it seamless, suave, and perfumed. In the sweet spot now and for years to come.
Black cherry, blood orange, violet, lavender, new leather, mint, cocoa nibs, rosemary, lead pencil.
Satin, cocoa-powder tannin, dense yet light on its feet. 18 months, 50% new French oak. 14.9% ABV.
Resinous dark fruit and dark green herbs. Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Franc on sand, Merlot for flesh, Cabernet for the spine
On the Jonata sheet, El Alma is 80 percent Cabernet Franc, 15 percent Merlot, and 5 percent Cabernet Sauvignon from Careaga sand in Ballard Canyon. Eighteen months in 50 percent new and 50 percent used French oak, 225-liter barrels. Matt Dees wants perfume and satin, not a green-bean cartoon of Franc. The sand keeps the wine lifted. The oak is a frame, not a speech.
Merlot fills the middle. Cabernet Sauvignon keeps the line. Franc is the voice: herbs, flowers, and a graphite close.
Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve near 62 F. Rosemary lamb or steak au poivre.
The soul of the ranch, in one grape
El Alma means the soul. On this ranch, that soul is Cabernet Franc.
Jonata takes its name from the 1845 Rancho San Carlos de Jonata land grant, with a Chumash root for the word as tall oak. Stan Kroenke planted only a fraction of the 586 acres.
Matt Dees has been here since the first harvest in 2004. The vineyard speaks two languages: Rhone and Bordeaux, side by side on sand.
El Alma is the Franc argument. La Sangre is the Syrah argument. Same ranch, same winemaker, two bottles that do not taste like Napa copies.
Herb-forward lamb, then pepper-crusted steak
El Alma wants char, salt, rosemary, and a pan sauce. The herbal edge of Franc is the pairing brief.
Two plates. One rosemary lamb chop. One steak au poivre. Both can take Franc perfume and satin tannin.
Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Garlic and Rosemary Lamb Chops with Honey Cider Glaze
Herb-forward lamb pulls the wine's cedar, tobacco, mint, and lavender into clearer focus.
Why it works: Rosemary and char echo Franc herbs while lamb fat handles cocoa-powder tannin.
View Recipe for garlic and rosemary lamb chops (opens in a new tab)
Steak au Poivre with Red Wine Pan Sauce
Pepper, pan sauce, and beef give the wine's leather, cocoa, and graphite a savory landing.
Why it works: Cracked pepper and reduction meet mint, cocoa nibs, and lead pencil without burying the perfume.
View Recipe for steak au poivre with red wine pan sauce (opens in a new tab)Put El Alma in the cart
Matt Dees, Cabernet Franc, Jeb Dunnuck 98. One hundred sixty-five dollars.
Put six in the cart. This is the Jonata Franc that already has the vintage and the satin.
