Driving down Lewis Rogers Lane past an English-style brick house in Ribbon Ridge, I found myself at Doug Tunnell’s winery named after the house he lives in with his wife and winery co-owner, Melissa. Certified organic since it’s inception in 1990, Brick House is a pioneer in the industry, and Doug is already looking into solar power farming. He explains, “No solar cellars are in place yet, but we’re studying the technology.” This is a winemaker who cares about the environment and is light years ahead of his peers in his efforts to produce wines sustainably.

I like Brick House’s focus. Just the three Burgundy varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Gamay Noir. They produce two lines of Chardonnay, five Pinot bottlings (“Select,” “Cuvée du Tonnelier,” “Les Dijonnais,” “Evelyn’s,” and the just-launched cuvée “Boulder Block”), along with a surprisingly stunning Gamay Noir. I’ve been a big cheerleader for Gamay from small batch Beaujolais Nouveau to the top-of-the-line cru Beaujolais, so it was a real pleasure to discover an American interpretation so true to the soil and glory of this Burgundian grape.

I tasted several different barrel samples of the 2006 Gamay ($24) and could already anticipate the potential of the then soon-to-be bottled wine. Doug doesn’t believe Gamay benefits from new oak, so only older barrels are used here. Another wonderful little surprise he shared from his barrels was a work-in-progress blackberry port-like wine. It just makes sense for someone who has mastered Gamay to have a fruit-based dessert wine, too. And just as I expected, it was equally lush and true to the fruit. What can I say? I can hardly wait!