Nose
Stunning aromatic and flavor intensity and remarkable overall balance. The Roussanne tempers the brute power of the Syrah, while allowing the fruit to be totally expressive and beautiful. Ripe, silky tannins frame dark red fruit, exotic spices and white flowers on the striking finish.
Intensely peppery, rich and vibrant, with dark berry, roasted herb and espresso.
Palate
Gains depth and persistence through to the finish, revealing subtle flavor nuances that touch on tobacco, road tar and licorice.
It flows onto the palate with a thick, incredibly rich texture that somehow manages to stays light and fresh.
Growing Conditions
The Bone Rock blend comes from the Bone Rock block of James Berry Vineyard. It is a steep terrace of old head trained Syrah vines on a south facing slope. We unearthed fossilized whale bones when we terraced it and then needed to use jack hammers to plant the vines.
It
was an incredibly cool season (the coolest we had ever
experienced until 2011 came along!). This allowed for some
great hang time, which leads to great flavor and tannin
development. October and November were ideal, dry and not
too chilly, amazingly, everything ripened beautifully. (I was very
panicked we would get an October storm like we did in 2009.) In
the end, we were able to bring in some incredibly complex but
intense fruit that was a pleasure to work with in the cellar.
Winemaking
Our wines are never racked off their lees and are bottled unfined and unfiltered.
In 2010 we purchased a whole slew of
concrete fermentors and were extremely happy with how well
they turned our fruit into wine. I am sold on concrete as a
fermentation vessel. The concrete definitely helped in softening
up the prodigious tannins of 2010 and allowed us to keep the
wines fresher and more focused. It is a lovely combination.
The use of 40% whole clusters works beautifully here.
- Released: 2012
Appearance
Opaque ruby.
