BY WINEMAKER FREDRIK JOHANSSON

The 2010 growing season was challenging, uneven and hard to predict with a wet and cool spring, a beautiful June, and a foggier and cooler than normal summer.  The season culminated with a seismic heat-spike in late August and two additional spikes in late-September and mid-October. As always, Richard and the crew were up for the challenge and presented us with fruit of a superb quality. The one casualty of the vintage was yield – 2010 turned out to be our smallest crop ever.

An intense and primary nose driven by concentrated black cherries, graphite and ripe raspberries is lifted by varietal notes of olives, sage and menthol.  The polished palate melts into flavors of chocolate-speckled plums in a blackberry compote-infused bath of Chambord liqueur.  The deeper flavor profiles showcase a tar-infused ground coffee and fresh-tilled earth foundation of velvety tannins. This wine is open and inviting now but will reveal now-hidden layers of complexity with time.

Release Date: March 1, 2013
Harvest Dates: October 12 - October 27
Barrel Aging: 21 months
Oak: 100% French: 89% New, 11% used
Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.9%

Stay tuned...