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The Wine
Essences of pear, casaba and citrus in the nose are followed
by Granny Smith apple, citrus, star fruit, and firm peaches with
a light touch of creaminess on the palate. The finish is warm,
soft and lingering. Barrel fermented and aged in French oak for
10 months; 100% malolactic.
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The Vintage
With a warmer than normal February, bud break came early, in
the first week of March. Two weeks later, the 20% lighter than
normal rains ended. May and June were warmer than normal, giving
the vines a good start. After that, the growing season was long,
dry and mild, with only a few brief heat spikes moderated by
the cool climate. Thus, the vintage has fully ripened flavors.
Tannins are highly extractable and color is intense. Potentially
a great vintage.
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Fermentation and Aging
Picked in three lots in September for ideal ripeness as we worked
our way down the ridge line and whole cluster pressed a few hours
later. The juice was settled overnight,
then transferred to French oak for fermentation and 11 months
of sur lees aging.
785 cases were bottled in August 2003.
The Vineyard
A 5-acre vineyard on the eastern slope of the Santa Cruz mountains
planted in 1979 and 1980, predominantly on St. George rootstock. The
unirrigated vineyard is on a east-west ridge and the soils change
from gravel to shallow clay as the vineyard descends from 1,000
to 900 feet.
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