AmericanWinery.com

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The wine has classic aromas of cassis and ripe berry with notes of red plums. There are notes of tea, black olive and cola as well as toasty oak and a subtle mineral element. The flavors are rich and dense with ripe berry flavors and fine grained tannins. The finish is long lingering and promises a wine that is not only a pleasure now but one that will reward patient cellar aging.

Varieties

• 90% Cabernet Sauvignon
• 10% Merlot

Bottle Production

• 750 ml (Standard Bottle): 757

Vintage Notes

Record breaking warm weather in March got the growing season to an early start, nearly three weeks ahead of a normal year. Early April brought cool weather and drizzle then another recording breaking heat spell in late April. The vines were in full bloom at this point and the heat combined with low cluster counts (as the result of cool spring temperatures in 2003) meant that the harvest size in 2004 was destined to be small. May and June brought more warm weather although July was cooler than normal with lots of fog. There was another warm spell in late August and early September then the weather settled into a typical fall pattern of warm days and cool nights. This mild finish to harvest allowed our Cabernet to develop good flavor concentration and ripe, supple tannins.

Fermentation Notes

Winemaking for these wines combines the best of traditional Bordeaux winemaking and new, modern techniques. The grapes were hand harvested then carefully sorted prior to crushing and destemming. After a cold soaking period the must was fermented with Bordeaux yeast and traditional Bordeaux style screened pump-overs. At the completion of fermentation the wine continued to rest on the skins for an extended maceration to develop richness and complexity. The wine was gently pressed and placed in barrel for malolactic fermentation. The barrels selected were 100% French oak, 50% were new. The barrels used were all produced by fine Bordeaux coopers that use tight grained, well seasoned oak to handcraft their barrels. The wine was racked several times during aging to develop flavors and integrate tannins.

Technical Details

• % New Oak: 50.0%