2017 Merlot Napa Valley
Subtle nose of red fruits, a hint of milk chocolate and a touch of parsley. On the palate intense plums, strawberries and briar rush across the palate. As the wine opens up, blueberry notes become evident. The tight acidity helps maintain the structure of the wines which balanced against moderate tannins drive the finish. Pure, well rounded and delicious.
- Robin Akhurst, Winemaker
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Winemaker Notes
Cool hand-harvested Merlot, brought in at night was followed by prolonged pre-fermentation cold maceration, which allowed easy extraction of color and flavor compounds from the grape skins during fermentation. Extraction was individually tailored by wine lot, with the wines receiving on average one month on the skins to optimize aromatics and charm yet fully extract and develop tannins. The 2017 wine lots were racked in early spring 2018, following the completion of Malolactic fermentation in barrel, then again in June of 2019 prior to bottling. Overall, the wine received a total élevage of 20 months in our caves before bottling in December.
Vintage Notes
After a series of dry years, 2017 brought back plenty of rainfall, making it one of the wettest years on record. A wet winter and spring helped recharge the groundwater resources as well as filling reservoirs and irrigation ponds. Bud break happened around mid-march amidst continued light rain which helped in preventing frost damage. Bloom and fruit-set occurred under mild conditions giving a 75% successful fruit set. The abundance of soil moisture provided a plentiful water supply to the root systems throughout the year which fueled rigorous canopy growth. A mild June and July gave way to sporadic heat spike events immediately followed by cooling trends which ran throughout the harvest period. This caused a stop-and-start approach to harvesting as the sugar levels increased and then fell back down.
Vineyard Notes
Situated on fluvial soils deposited from the ever-changing course of the Napa River, this vineyard benefits from good drainage, perfect exposure and readily available nutrients. The farming uses the quad trellising to protect the grapes from too much sun exposure allowing for a long hang time with plenty of time for the grapes to ripen to their full potential.