RegionL California - North Coast
Grapes; 70% Mourvedre, 30% Syrah
Alcohol: 11.5%
Notes on the Wine
2021 was the first year in quite a while that mother nature was more predictable. There was continued severe drought, but in terms of wine this causes smaller and more concentrated crops. Growing season started earlier, due to extended drought causing earlier cluster development. This meant we had a very early and fast harvest season. Overall fruit quality is fantastic.
This wine was made using Carbonic fermentation, like the wines of Beaujolais. The Mourvedre and Syrah were fermented and aged separately then blend together prior to bottling. 100% of grapes were left whole cluster (stems and all). The wine was then blanketed with CO2 and held at cool temperatures for 8 days (70F). Our winemaker preformed 1 very gentle pump over per day. This was not to achieve extraction (the traditional use of a pump over), but instead was to just wet the dry grapes on the top of the fermenting tank. This ensures that the aerobic (oxygen loving) bacteria are kept out, keeping the wine from into vinegar. After 8 days the wine was pressed to barrel where it finishes primary fermentation. It is aged in neutral barrels for 6 months where it finishes malolactic fermentations prior to bottling.
