Vin Gris Rosé
Napa Valley

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Wine Stats

Vintage: 2011 Variety: 100% Merlot Vineyard: 100% Mitsuko's Vineyard (Carneros) Soil: haire clay-loams Harvest Date: October 15-16 Aging: 5 months in 100% neutral French oak	Alcohol: 14.1% T.A.: 6.10 g/L pH: 3.42 Residual Sugar: 1.30 g/L Bottled: April 2012 Cases: 200 Optimum Drinking: now-2015

Tasting Notes

Our 2011 Vin Gris possesses a fragrant and perfumed nose redolent of red raspberries and cherries with a hint of wildflowers and dried mint. The wine has a vivid entry with an expansive, juicy and elegant palate. This wine is built for pure refreshment and enjoyment - perfect for a summer lunch al fresco, or as a refreshing aperitif. Serve chilled.

Vineyard & Vintage Notes

2011 began with a cooler-than-average winter and spring, accompanied by intermittent rainfall which naturally thinned crop levels through berry shatter. Following weather-related delays in bud break, flowering and fruit-set, warmer summer temperatures together with an absence of seasonal heat spikes moved grape maturity forward through veraison in an ideal manner. During early autumn, average temperatures continued the fruit on an ideal path towards ripeness, with great flavor and tannin development even at lower sugar levels. However, rains began in earnest in early October, when only the first of our grapes had been harvested, a turn of events required extreme measures in the vineyard, including leaf pulling to expose clusters to drying breezes and removal of weather-damaged clusters. Thankfully, the well drained soils in our Estate vineyards meant we weathered the storms with minimal impact. Our vigilance and determination in the vineyard resulted in a small crop of high quality fruit demonstrating great freshness, vibrancy and balance which was able to be harvested and nurtured into the building blocks of our wine.

Winemaking Notes

Our 2011 Vin Gris is made in the traditional "saignée" style: after crushing the fruit for some of our Estate Merlot, we removed a small percentage of the freshly liberated juice. This technique both concentrates the flavor and structure of our red wines and allows us to make a lovely dry rosé, keeping the more delicate aromatics and fruit flavors of the merlot, yet without the tannins. The result is an elegant, light bodied wine, with plenty of bright fruit and ethereal substance, which is bottled after resting a mere 5 months in neutral French oak barrels.

Previous Vintages

2010

2009