Leisure Street Winery was named after its address: Leisure Street. But success and growth bring many challenges, among them, changing the address without changing the winery’s name. Here is what we found when we visited their new location:
We had visited Leisure Street Winery at the original location and were excited to see their new place. Leisure Street Winery is now on Tesla Road, home to many fine wineries. The first thing we noticed as we drove in was that instead of a relatively small tasting room tucked into a business park, the new property was spacious. Large outdoor areas provided ample room for recreation, picnicing, live music, and of course, wine tasting. Although we were the only visitors at this moment, it was fun to imagine an afternoon club event with every spot filled.
We went inside the tasting room and were greeted by co-owner and co-winemaker Kelly Volpatti. The tasting bar, a small part of the overall tasting room floor space, was larger than their entire original tasting room. As Kelly told us about the challenges of building and opening the tasting room, she started us with their 2017 Primativo. The amazing aromas enticed us into flavors of blackberry and ripe plum. A ghost finish with tamed tannins make this a great wine for pairing with mild cheeses.
We next tasted their 2016 “My Mia” Barbera. This is a fun, complex wine, with layers of sweet cherry, cotton candy, cola and green olives all dancing across the tongue. Their 2017 Grenache was a quintessential Grenache, with amazing pomegranate and blackberry flavors. Next was their 2014 “Left Bank” Red Blend, with a bright fruit nose and beautifully balanced fruit and floral notes. A very food-friendly blend!
Our next taste blew us away! Their 2014 Mourvedre started with intriguing chocolate aromas and backed that up with bright Ranier cherry flavors and a crisp, fruit finish. This jumped on our Take Home list after the first sip. Our flight concluded with their 2016 “Godfather” Barbera. Complex and layered, with nutmeg, blueberries and watermelon notes all racing around the mouth. The finish had a nice oaky residual flavor.
Our tasting flight was complete and several new groups of tasters were arriving, so we purchased our wine and congratulated Kelly on their new facility. This space should serve Leisure Street Winery well for many years to come.
About the Author: John grills a mean steak and is always in the market for another wine fridge. Believes that if a winery has more than 10 employees, it's probably too big. Buys wine faster than he drinks it, but who cares?
