It is quite clear, upon cresting the hill around which DuBrul Vineyard is situated, that you have come to a special place. Even if you knew nothing about vineyards or grapes, there is something both exceeding natural, and beyond naturalness about the perfection of the curves and valleys that make up the vineyard. And there is something surreal about the perfection of the vines. The grapes taste better as grapes than those of their neighbors (this sounds ridiculous, but I’ve been there more than a few times now, and always visited neighboring vineyards, and it’s true). The soil is exceedingly inhospitable basalt with a thin layer of rocky volcanic loess. It doesn’t hurt that the vineyard practices here wonderful.
But what about the wine? While there have been a number of great wines made from DuBrul vineyard, by Owen Roe, Woodward Canyon and many other of the great Washington Producers, the winesof Côte Bonneville have been exceedingly special. Maybe the know the vineyard better than anyone else, or perhapsthe save the best blocks for themselves, or maybe they have a great winemaker. The truth is, it must be all of these things, because wines this good don’t come along by accident. What is amazing to me is that the Chardonnay is just as good as the Bordeaux Blends.
I have tasted this wine at a number of points through its evolution, beginning in barrel. It has always had the magical combination of intense fruit, richness, and a firm backbone of acidity (from the mineral composition of the soil and from the amazing diurnal (night to day) temperature shift of the sight. There is plenty of oak, but it never tastes overwhelming (for me this is one of the marks of wines from great sites that are made well). This is a full-throttle Chardonnay, but it’s light on it’s feet. Try this with Foie Gras, Salmon, Sautéed Wild Mushrooms, Lobster. Or for a real treat, try a dish that Kerry Sear made for a wine dinner I was hosting at Cascadia way back in the day: stuff a whole salmon with a lobe of foie gras, and slowly roast it until it’s just done. The Foie Gras disappears except for a very pretty grey/silver foam on the meat of the salmon but you then have foie Gras scented salmon . . . not bad! Drink now – 2015. Something like 125 Cases made
This is a very cool project I came across a few months ago at a tasting. Rather than pontificate, I’m going to reprint the bio of the winemaker and the vineyard manager and a profile of the vineyard from the website. The wines are as delicious as Pinot Noir can be, and though the critics disagreed with me slightly, this was my favorite of the three they made in 2006. I have also reprinted the fiche technique below, for details on winemaking etc.
Born in Otago, Grant was educated at Lincoln College in Canterbury. In 1980, he helped establish Pine Ridge Winery in Napa, California and worked there as assistant winemaker until 1986. In 1987, he helped build another Napa winery, Domaine Napa, and worked there as head winemaker until 1993. 
The vineyard is located in Westside Paso Robles out Hwy 46 about 12 miles from the ocean and Hearst Castle, as a crow flies. The proximity to the ocean helps regulate the high temperatures often associated with Paso Robles and is further aided by tremendous diurnal temperature variations. Peak temperatures can reach the low 100-degree range yet dive into the low 50s at night, allowing for the vines to recover. These large temperature fluctuations between high and low create a very desirable “sugar to acid ratio”. This, coupled with the high-lime, calcareous soils which do not allow for a lot of potassium absorption, keep pHs lower, even at elevated sugar levels, resulting in ripe fruity wines with a balanced underlying acidity. This vineyard’s attributes aid in my syrah winemaking technique of including 50% to 100% whole cluster, dependant on vintage.