Nose
inviting aromas of raspberry, rose and brown spice
Palate
rich flavors of dark chocolate, mineral and toast on the palate. Full bodied, this monumental wine wraps up with hints of game and pepper on a long finish.
Growing Conditions
Our Cabernet Franc vines are an average age of 25 years and sit above the fog line, receiving the ideal combination of sunlight and cool breezes to build layered, complex flavors. The 2016 growing season was another dry, warm and steady one with no weather events impacting quality or yield. Consistently mellow temperatures throughout the spring and summer allowed grapes to ripen fully and evenly, and a slightly early harvest allowed us to pick every block at optimum ripeness. The result was concentrated fruit of particularly high quality with rich flavors and complexity.
Harvest
The Cabernet Franc grapes were hand harvested and delivered to the winery in small bins.
Aging
The grapes were sorted by hand, then destemmed and partially crushed before being gravity-fed into our small, 3.5 and 7 ton open-top tanks for a 3-day cold soak. Up to 14 days after primary fermentation, the wine was gravity racked into oak barrels for malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged 15 months in French oak barrels (54% new) and 6 months in bottle.
