Palate
The picture perfect 2012 vintage has yielded a wine with mouthfilling richness,
alluring aromatics and abundant varietal character. Golden fig, apricot and peach notes from the
sémillon combine with the sauvignon’s key lime, gooseberry and lemongrass notes and the
muscadelle’s expressive floral aromas to create a complete and compelling whole. Lovely
minerality, and enlivening acidity underscore the lush fruit, while adding dimension to the smooth,
silky mouthfeel. Beautiful now, but also a true cellar-worthy white.
Growing Conditions
Across the board, 2012 was a great vintage, showing exactly what we look
for in each vineyard and varietal. Spring was temperate with almost all of the rain falling in May
and June. July and August were dry, with perfect weather and no extreme heat events. In the
run-up to harvest we had temperatures in the 65º to 70º range, allowing us to pick each varietal
when we wanted with a perfect balance of sugars and acids.
Harvest
Harvest started on September 10th,
with our sauvignon coming in at 22.8º Brix. Our sémillon from Spring Creek and Rosebud Ranch
came in on September 17th and 18th, at 21.5º and 23.2º Brix respectively, with the muscadelle
harvested on September 20th at 25.0º Brix.
Winemaking
All the juices were handled using techniques designed to preserve fresh fruit and
floral purity. Each small harvest was sorted by hand after hand picking and vineyard sorting. The
sémillon was 30% cold-soaked on its skins to build weight and power, while the rest of the
sémillon was whole-cluster pressed to retain pure varietal character. Both the sauvignon blanc
and muscadelle were also fermented as whole cluster pressed juice. To preserve its true character, and in keeping with our
gentle winemaking approach, this wine was not cold stabilized. As a result, if stored exceedingly
cold, it may shed natural tartaric crystals.
Aging
Fermentations were done
by native yeasts in both Nomblot concrete tanks and old Bordeaux barrels (4% new oak), with
aging on lees to enhance texture and aroma. The wine was blended in the early summer from
our best barrels and tank wine, and represents 60% barrel aging and 40% concrete, with 75%
malolactic to balance acidity and flavors.
