Nose
This classic Bordeaux-style wine opens with intense
aromatics of spice and earthy notes.
Palate
Balanced flavors of
dark fruit, blackberry and black cherry lead to hints of
cocoa on the palate. The supple tannins lead to a wellbalanced finish. This wine is powerful, yet elegant.
Growing Conditions
2012 was a return to the “classic” Washington vintage
and a much welcomed change from the cooler 2010 and
2011 vintages. Accelerated ripening due to the warm summer season was
slowed by cooler temperatures in early fall. Overall the 2012
harvest was outstanding; the red wines are flavorful and rich
with ripe tannins.
Source vineyards: the Beverly, Stone Tree,
Andrews & Rowell, Four Feather and
Wautoma Springs Vineyards. Vineyard sites are located on the Wahluke Slope—for aromatics
and complexity; the Cold Creek area—for flavor and fruitiness;
and on the Horse Heaven Hills—which contributes texture
and body. The balance between warm daytime temperatures and cooler
evenings concentrated aromatics and enhanced complexity. The region’s low rainfall yields concentrated fruit with depth
and varietal expression.
Winemaking
Hand-picked grapes from the finest vineyards in the
Columbia Valley were crushed and cold-soaked on the skins
for two days to extract soft tannins and intense color. Fermentation lasted 6-10 days on the skins and was followed
by 4 weeks of malolactic fermentation in barrels. The wine
was blended immediately after fermentation to integrate
flavors prior to oak-aging.
Aging
The traditional Bordeaux winemaking protocol included
barrel aging in predominately new French oak for 26 months
in our “Le Petit Chai”—a cellar honoring the traditional
French techniques that are our inspiration.
