Winemaker Notes

Deep ruby-red. Vibrant aromas of raspberry, red cherry, mocha and tobacco, enlivened by a distinctly rocky element. Very ripe but juicy and slightly tight yet opens with air, showing itself but less full sweetness and flesh. This is a more sharply delineated and long, finishing with subtle suggestions of brown spices, tobacco and slight licorice. Time in the bottle will reveal more, of course.

The 2006 is dense, round and will give and give. An elegant vintage.

Climate and Harvest

The season got off to a late start from the heavy rains that persisted throughout the winter months and into early spring. Keeping with the trend of winter and despite the heat spike we had in June, late spring and summer were cooler than normal, with lots of late-morning fog, which kept the vines about two-to-three weeks behind normal. The Indian summer we usually have finally came toward late October. The fruit that was patiently waiting for the right temperatures to resolve tannins ripened at a quick pace, and we harvested our vineyard in 12 days.

The long hang time on the vine allowed the fruit to full concentrate. Unlike 2005 where the fruit developed later, the 2006 showed bright flavors early on. The initial cold soak lasted 10 days and natural fermentation went a big longer than usual with 14 days on average. Extended maceration was slightly shorter this year. The oak welcomed this vintage in early December for 20 months.