Nose
Our 2017 Viognier is fresh and lively, showcasing the variety’s classic stone fruit and citrus blossom characteristics, with hints of lemon meringue and white pepper.
Palate
This wine has racing acidity and a steely minerality which adds to the wine’s crispness and complexity. Layers of white peach, hints of lemon grass and raw almond, are plentiful on the palate, leading to a very long elegant, delicately floral spiced finish. This Viognier is a mouthwatering expression of Viognier that is perfect for warm weather occasions offering a silky texture and roundness on the palate that invites you to take another sip, again and again. Enjoy on its own or pair with a wide variety of your favorite dishes.
Growing Conditions
Overall, 2017 proved to be a very memorable vintage with slightly smaller yields but exceptional quality. After much needed rainfall in the winter months ended the drought, a brief period of warmer than usual temperatures occurred during Labor Day weekend which accelerated the harvest in some areas but was perfect for ripening the fruit in the Napa Valley. Temperatures subsided just when we needed and the fruit was allowed to mature and ripen perfectly on the vines before harvest officially began in mid-August. 2017 will be remembered as an intense and unpredictable harvest but one of tremendous quality, with wines showing great flavor intensity, perfect ripening and maturity, lovely balance and complexity, especially for varieties like Viognier.
Winemaking
The beauty of Viognier is captured in its freshness, and the traditional techniques used by Winemaker Christophe Paubert preserve that splendor. Harvested by hand, the fruit was whole-cluster pressed and fermented in neutral French oak barrels. It was then aged on the lees and stirred every week for four months. This wine does not go through malolactic fermentation, which helped to preserve the delicate floral aromas, fruit freshness and balanced acidity.
