Nose
This Merlot is bold and intense. Aromas of ripe, jammy dark
fruit fill the nose, followed by layers of tobacco and sage.
Palate
Ripe
tannins fill the palate and lead to a lengthy, yet focused finish.
Growing Conditions
The 2015 vintage was one of the warmest growing seasons on record in Washington. Warm temperatures continued through the spring and summer, moderating slightly into fall and extending an early harvest. Overall, 2015 saw very favorable growing conditions, producing optimal ripening across varieties and yielding outstanding wines throughout the region.
Source vineyard: Fruit was handpicked from Four Feathers Vineyard Block 09,
which is nestled against a softly sloping hill. Low yielding vines produce small clusters and small berries,
resulting in intense varietal flavors and deep color. The balance between warm daytime temperatures and cooler
evenings concentrated aromatics and enhanced complexity. Low rainfall stressed the vines, and irrigation was applied
judiciously to create concentrated varietal expression.
Winemaking
Fruit was handpicked at the peak of ripeness, destemmed, sorted and placed into stainless steel tanks. A twice-daily pumpover regime was used to extract color and flavors. The grapes were cold soaked for two days prior to fermentation to help extract color and flavor from the grape skins without extracting too much tannin. Initial fermentation occurred in a mixture of concrete, oak and
stainless steel tanks to help the grapes express themselves in
three different ways to bring complexity to the final blend.
Aging
Lots were kept separate and placed into 85% new French
oak barrels. Aging occurred for 19 months, with blending
happening just prior to bottling.
