Nose

Aromas of fresh blackberry, black currants and violets.

Palate

This full-bodied wine is layered with dark fruit, dried violets and savory undertones. The finish is long and integrated with beautifully weighted tannins.

Growing Conditions

Our Estate GSM is grown in the Templeton Gap district, which is near perfect conditions for the varietal; Warm days, cool nights and afternoon spring and summer breezes with some maritime influence from the Pacific Ocean, just 22 miles away. Soils are clay-based but integrated with small, water worn limestone deposits that helps to keep the soil well-drained. Plant spacing is 5.5’ x 6’ which accommodates more plants per acre, thus allowing each plant to produce less fruit with concentrated color and flavors.
Our Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre Rhône varieties thrive at our estate. The long growing season allows the vines to fully mature the grapes, creating great color and structure.

Harvest

The 2021 growing season was very typical through early spring with warm days and cool nights. Early summer through harvest gave us some unexpected heatwaves but plenty of marine breezes and mild weather prevailed. The result was a slight delay of harvest while we waited for acidity, pH and brix to balance creating mature flavors.

Bottling

February 2023

Winemaking

Grenache from Clones from France and Spain- Tablas Creek Vineyard Selection (Beaucastel CDP France via Paso Robles), Garnacha Clone 814 (Spain), Tinta Clone 01 (Spain), Alban (Rayas CDP, France) Syrah clone 383 (Hermitage, France), and Mourvèdre clone 369 (Spain via France) were hand-picked and fermented in five-ton, open-top tanks separated by varietal and vineyard block. After daily pump-overs (for color and tannin extraction) for 10 days, the tanks were tasted and analyzed for their tannin and structure to determine the length of extended maceration. The wines were held on their skins for an additional 10-15 days before they were barreled.

Aging

Barreled down into 100% once used French oak barrels and aged for 10 months. After creation of the blend in summer 2022, the wine aged for an additional six months in 100% new French Oak before being racked just prior to bottling.