Nose
This wine broods complexity of black fruit like blueberry, black currant and blackberry jam. With nuances of dried herbs, dark cherry, juniper berry, black pepper, aromatic cedar, tobacco, dark chocolate and slight vanilla, this wine is a rock star!
Palate
The oak age has enhanced this wine’s development, but is nicely integrated leaving the fruit to be the dominant force. The flavors are reminiscent of dark cherry and ripe plum, nicely integrated with a great balance of acidity and amazingly resolved tannins. This Petite Sirah has tremendous length of flavors from the initial sniff to the lingering finish in the mouth. Try it with black peppercorn steaks or your favorite cigar. Enjoy.
Growing Conditions
This growing season was ideal and some would venture to say....”perfect”. With textbook conditions for spring bud break, the vines continued steady growth over the spring, flowering and fruit set. Classic weather promoted a very even set of fruit that was abundant but not over cropped. The long summer days brought a normal veraison, initiating the ripening period that achieved our goals before the fall rains. Harvest was a winemaker’s dream.
Harvest
October 9th, at 24.7° brix
Bottling
August 2014
Winemaking
Five day cold soak, inoculated with D254yeast. 8-10 day stainless steel fermentation at 76-88°F at the peak.
Aging
21 months in 59 gallon French and American oak barrels, with 24% new French oak and 10% new American oak from World Cooperage
Appearance
Dark, opaque, black ruby in color.
