Palate
Boreal begins with Syrah (94%) from Archie Den Hoed’s Yakima Valley vineyards. The cooler site, along with more canopy, give us grapes perfect for this lighter more delicate style. Co-fermented with Viognier (6%) from our Canoe Ridge Estate Vineyard for floral notes
to pair with the bright red fruit.
Growing Conditions
The 2016 vintage experienced the best of both worlds with a hot spring and early summer, but also a cool fall season.
Cooler temperatures in August and September slowed down ripening and resulted in longer hang time for the grapes, and the longest harvest on record in Washington State (August 15- November 15). Overall, 2016 saw very favorable growing conditions, producing wines with ripeness and elegance.
94% of the fruit was sourced from our Yakima Valley vineyards for bold and structured Syrah.
6% of the fruit was sourced from Horse Heaven Hills for elegant and crisp Viognier.
The region’s sunny days and cool evening temperatures create ideal conditions for intense aroma and flavor development in the ripening grapes.
Winemaking
Ripe grapes were destemmed and sorted with a cutting-edge grape receiving and sorting system designed to gently remove any green material from the grapes, allowing for pure varietal expression and soft mouthfeel.
Daily gentle pumpovers were used to extract optimal flavor and color and minimize harsh tannins.
Frequentairativerackingtakesplaceduringbarrelagingtosoftentanninsandenhancemouthfeel.
For select lots, a classic Northern Rhone technique referred to as ‘co-fermentation’ was employed, whereby small amount of whole cluster Viognier grapes were added to the Syrah grapes and fermented together.
Aging
Aged for 18 months in French oak; 3% new.
