Nose
Bring out the Christmas wreaths, mulling spices, and cinnamon brooms, this wine smells like the holiday season!
Palate
This is Epoch’s 3rd rendition of a Reserva – only having been produced in the 2009, 2012, and now 2013 vintages. In addition, this Tempranillo is the first of its kind to be exclusively from our Catapult Vineyard. The extra year plus in barrel permits more evolution of Tempranillo’s bold structure, yielding rich notes of barrel spice, integrated red fruits and chewy tannins. Once open, this wine should stay happy in the bottle for several days if kept at a cool temperature.
Growing Conditions
Parentage: 100% Catapult Vineyard
Stomping Grounds: Rocky, fractured shale soils on a west-facing slope
Catapult Vineyard:
Directly in the heart of the Paso Robles’ Templeton Gap, near the acclaimed L’Aventure and Booker Vineyards, sits our Catapult Vineyard. In 2008 we came across 45 barren acres of extreme rocky soils packed with silicious shale and little limestone content. Just the type of soils we love; soils that encourage the vines to struggle while finding nourishment deep within the ground. The reward of this hardworking vine are berries packed with wicked complexity and intense flavors.
Though barely three miles from our Paderewski Vineyard, the pH level at Catapult Vineyard is in the high 5’s. A nice complement to the dirt over at “Rewski”. This pH difference, coupled with the cooler mesoclimate at Catapult allows for different flavor profiles from the fruit produced.
Planted: 2008 Acreage: 28 under vine, 45 total Soils: shale, clay, silt, rocky pH: high 5s AVA: Paso Robles District: Willow Creek Red Varietals: Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah, and Tempranillo White Varietals: Grenache Blanc,Roussane, and Viognier
Harvest
September 9, 2013
Bottling
Graduation: Bottled August 17, 2016 | Debut: Released Fall 2017
Winemaking
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel tanks
Aging
Aged for 35 months in French oak barrels
Food Pairing
Family and friends around a roaring fire