Winemaker's Notes
The major component of this is grown near Annapolis, on the far Northern Sonoma Coast. At that site, it is not as cold as one might expect, especially at night and the grapes can transition rapidly thru what I consider the optimal level of ripeness. Even though it is a two-hour drive from the winery, I insist on eating grapes to determine harvest date. I’m happy to report, we nailed it.
The wine has plenty richness and darker fruits like plums and blackberries, but there is a great sense of freshness about the wine with its ‘just right’ tannins and acidity which bring some red-fruit and floral elements in this wine forward on the finish. Slight loamy earthiness, which should increase moderately over the next few years helps keep the wine interesting, and expands the utility of this wine. Allen Meadows expressed it another way: “. . . utterly delicious and seductive flavors that are blessed with excellent dry extract levels that confer a velvety mouth feel onto this sappy, dusty, and solidly firm finish.” 91 pts. Burghound Issue 36, October 2009.
Judi Scherrer –
Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar – May 2010
Dark, bright red. Vibrant aromas of blackberry, licorice, rose and star anise. Firm and intense, with very good sweetness and fleshiness to the juicy dark berry and floral flavors. The tannins are a bit unyielding but arrive late. The sappy finish features high-pitched spice notes and lingering minerality. 91(+?) points. Josh Raynolds