Nose
Brooding, complex, and rich yet surprisingly elegant. Aromatics of violets, white pepper, and pipe tobacco open up to a core of crushed stone and granite enveloped in blackberry and boysenberry compote.
Palate
Espresso, dark chocolate, and exotic spices accentuate a long expansive finish.
Harvest
The grapes were handpicked in late September. Approximately half of the fruit was destemmed and used for whole berry fermentation; the other half was left intact for whole cluster fermentation. A five-day cold soak was used. Punch-downs were completed three times per day by hand with a rack-and-return performed every other day during the peak of fermentation.
Aging
The wine was aged for seventeen months in all French oak, a judicious amount of which was new. The wine was racked once after secondary fermentation was complete. A considerable amount of effort was made to expose the wine to as little oxygen as possible.
