Palate
This Merlot has ripe, juicy fruit notes with a touch of spice. Black cherry, plum and blackberry linger on the palate, while notes of sweet tobacco, clove and soft earth allow for a gentle touch of complexity. With each sip, this wine continues to amaze with new flavors and aromas. This Merlot’s velvet-like tannins and ability to expand on the palate will delight some the most demanding aficionados.
Growing Conditions
Handpicked fruit for this Merlot came from our Sunny Slope Vineyard, located in the eastern foothills of the Mayacamas Mountain of Sonoma Valley, and our Imagery Estate Vineyard. Each vineyard has southwest exposure allowing for maximum sunlight exposure, resulting in grapes with complex and fully developed dark fruit flavors.
2014 was a vintage that brought us a third year of drought. Our farming practices give us an edge over traditional farmers, since our vines have been taught to drive their roots deep into the soils, claiming water from below, not above. However, if the rain doesn’t come soon we can expect some difficulties ahead. We received “miracle rains” in March, and a shake-up by Mother Earth in August kept us on our toes (thankfully we only had a few repairs needed). The summer went smoothly, without significant heat spikes, but we did see high humidity throughout. Harvest was fast and compact until the early part of October provided a break to process the massive amounts of fruit. This is another great vintage on the heels of the fantastic 2012’s, and superb 2013’s; 2014, creating wines of true pedigree.
Bottling
The final wine bottled in May of 2015.
Winemaking
The fruit was fermented for 30 days in a pumpover tank. The wine was pressed at dryness and then placed in 100% French oak barrels.
Aging
100% French oak barrels (45% new oak) for 18 months.
