TASTING NOTES
A
clear
wine
with
a
beautiful
reddish
purple
color
and
an
earthy
nose
with
notes
of
forest
floor,
must
and
mushrooms
reminiscent
of
old
world
St.
Emilion
or
Pomerol.
The
flavor
recapitulates
the
bouquet
with
excellent
balance
and
feminine
qualities
of
ripe
fruit
with
plum
overtones
but
a
delicate
quality,
excellent
acidity
and
a
refreshing
medium
long
finish.
There
is
minerality
and
an
earthiness
unusual
for
a
California
merlot
and
a
low
alcohol
content
of
only
13
percent.
A
beautiful
old-‐world
style
wine.
WINEMAKING NOTES
The
grapes
were
hand
picked
October
25th
2009.
The
wine
was
fermented
in
one
ton
bin
then
press
into
barrel
for
malolactic
fermentation
and
aged
18
months
in
French
oak.
Only
77
cases
were
produced.
VINTAGE NOTES
This
is
our
first
vintage
of
Merlot
and
is
produced
from
our
estate
vineyard
located
in
Calistoga.
In
2008
we
conducted
a
soil
study
of
entire
property.
The
result
of
this
study
showed
that
despite
the
deep,
rich
soil
of
the
majority
of
our
land,
the
Merlot
vineyard
is
actually
planted
on
a
gravel
area,
allowing
the
vines
to
experience
a
water
deficit
early
in
the
season
around
veraison.
This
deficit
is
necessary
to
produce
quality
red
fruit;
small
berries
and
phenolic
compounds
such
as
tannin
and
color.