An intriguing wine from the oldest commercial vineyard in Carmel Valley! The Raj Parr Wine Club Nithya is soft, approachable and perfect for fall sipping.
The 2019 Raj Parr Wine Club Nithya is a great wine for fall, and not just because the wine label is adorned with wisps of green foliage and acorns.
The Raj Parr Wine Club Nithya isn’t just a good wine, it’s an interesting wine. You see, the grapes in this Cab Franc / Malbec blend are sourced from the historic Massa Organic Estate vineyard in Carmel Valley, California.
If you want to nerd out on California viticulture history for a moment, it’s worth noting that Massa Organic Vineyards was formerly the Heller Estate and Durney Vineyards. If those California wine history names sound familiar, it’s because the Durney family planted vines on the property in 1968 and became the first real commercial planters in Carmel Valley, California. So the property where winemaker Rajat Parr has sourced the grapes for this blend has some serious street cred when it comes to the quality of grapes it produces.
But I digress, Nithya is an enigmatic bottle, and an enigmatic blend. The best way to describe this wine is corseted. What I mean is, the wine has ample body, but it’s restrained by the low alcohol level – just 12.5%.
The tannins are soft, but present, and notes of dark cherry and plum abound.
Everything about this wine says, great wine for fall, particularly for those September fall days that are on the warmer side.
Nithya is a wine that makes you think. With each sip you wonder, how did Raj Parr make a wine so full and rich, but also so measured, so cinched in, to stay with our corset metaphor.
What to Pair with It
I enjoyed this Cab Franc / Malbec blend with Italian food, specifically a Margarita pizza and roasted chicken dish. The wine stood up to the tomatoes and cheese of the pizza, but didn’t talk over the delicate chicken.
This Carmel Valley wine is versatile; pair it with lighter dishes like chicken or salmon, or something gamier like lamb. It’s so easy drinking that you could also pair it with Netflix and your remote! No food required.
Where to Buy Raj Parr Wine Club Nithya
As far as I can tell, Raj Parr Wines are sold exclusively through the Raj Parr Wine Club, which is where I picked up this bottle, along with a few others!
If you want to go deeper into the world of one the most respected winemakers in the country, take a look at Sandhi, Parr’s other wine label, and Evening Land Vineyards, where he and partner Sashi Moorman steward the land.
And, we can’t forget Domaine de la Cote, Parr and Moorman’s six vineyard collection at the edge of the Santa Rita Hills.
Raj Parr wines never disappoint, and this blend from one of California’s most historic vineyards is no exception!