North Coast

Grape Source   For this wine I reached out into the glorious vineyards of California's North Coast and created an absolutely succulent blend made from grapes from Mendocino and Lake Counties. It was my first time using Cabernet from these appelations, although I have made Pinot Noir for years out of these areas. To tell the truth, I was knocked absolutely flat when I saw the quality of the wine as it finished fermentation---rich, fruity, structured….a true joy!

Chemistry at Bottling -pH: 3.8 -Total Acidity: 5.4 grams/liter -Alcohol: 13.55% -Free Sulfur Dioxide: 30 parts per million -Total Sulfur Dioxide: 89 parts per million

Maceration      Different grapes needed different maceration times that ranged from 10 to 25 days on the skins. Once the wine was dry, I tasted them each day to see if they were ready to press.

Varietal Blend    The blend is mostly Cabernet, but has a bit of Petit Verdot and Merlot blended in too.

Sensory Notes:

The nose holds an array of both major and minor notes. Most pronounced are cherry, berry and vanilla oak, but behind this is quite a cacophony of hints and nuances-celery, kale, pine-cone, peat all come to mind. These aromas follow through in the flavors, but even more important, once the wine is on your tongue, is the mouthfeel---bright fruity and mouthfilling.

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