A lovely purply-red color! The nose is lush raspberry,
ripe purple plums, and nice pipe tobacco. In the mouth, blackberries,
dark cherries and cassis with nice structure and approachable
tannins. The finish lingers smoothly.
The Vintage
The general characteristics of the 2000 growing season were an
early spring and moderately cool summer. This, coupled with average
rain fall of 29 inches, gave an ideal growing season of traditional
yields and high quality fruit. A September heat wave assured that
all the fruit ripened and was harvested in small lots with good
sugar and acid balance before the fall rains.
Fermentation and Aging
The grapes were picked by hand in multiple lots, destemmed, and
fermented in small lots with hand punch down four times a day.
After pressing, the wine went through malolactic fermentation
and 22 months of barrel aging.
The Vineyard
Valley View is a 3-acre on the eastern slopes of the Santa Cruz
Mountains. Planted in 1989, the soils of this south-facing vineyard
change from gravel to shallow clay as the steep, terraced vineyard
descends from 1,060 to 960 feet.
