Nose
It shows a fresh
and delicate bouquet of flowers on the nose mingling with white
peach, pink grapefruit and lemon rind.
Palate
Aged just a touch in French
Oak to enhance the vibrant stone fruit Viognier is known for.
Bright acidity offsets the malo-lactic creaminess, bringing another
layer of complexity to the wine. A perfect pairing for seafood and
light pasta dishes
Growing Conditions
Yet another year of drought conditions began with our “rainy season” ending early, followed immediately by flowering fruit
trees opening up before the end of January. We received only about 75% of our usual rain. Spring was long, cool, overcast
and punctuated by several windy days during flowering that badly affected fruit set. Shatter was evident in several of the
vineyards we work with; by harvest, our Chardonnay crop was off by about 40% and our Syrah by 60%. Growing season
temperatures were steady and warm – perfect for developing the complex fruit flavors we look for, as well as preserving the
acidity necessary for mouth-watering wine. Harvest began in July, our earliest harvest date on record at BELL, and we were
completely finished bringing in our red grapes by the first day of October, also a record. To quote Anthony, “Young wines
look to be of excellent quality with deep color and lovely fruit aromas, and initial analysis shows no serious impacts from
the series of heat waves we experienced.”
Aging
100% barrel fermented & malo-lactic 4
months in 22% new French Oak
