Leo Steen Jurassic Vineyard 'The Steen' 2021 Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara, California

Style 😋: Textured and mineral-driven. Notes of ripe pear, white peach, honeycomb, and wet stone, with a crisp, saline finish.

Producer: Leo Steen Wines

Grape 🍇: Chenin Blanc

Place 🌎: Jurassic Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara, California

Story 📖: Danish-born Leo Hansen made a name for himself as a sommelier before turning his focus to winemaking, with a passion for crafting expressive, site-driven Chenin Blanc. His wines celebrate the grape’s versatility and ability to reflect terroir with precision. Sourcing from old-vine, dry-farmed vineyards, Leo works with native fermentations and neutral vessels to highlight purity and texture.

Jurassic Vineyard, planted in the early 1980s, sits on sandy, limestone and fossil-rich soils in the Santa Ynez Valley. These old Chenin vines yield a wine of incredible depth and energy. Fermented in concrete where it rests for 10 months before going into neutral oak for 5 months. 16 months in bottle before release. ‘The Steen’ is a standout example of California Chenin.

Pairing 🍽: Grilled peaches with ricotta and honey.