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The harvest of 2004 has two distinct halves, the first half was characterized by a lengthy period of hot days just before and after the Labor Day weekend, which pushed early ripening varietals like Pinot Noir to relatively high sugar levels in a short time. After that, the weather cooled off and stayed moderate for the balance of the harvest. We harvested the Grenache grapes at Alisos vineyard on October 19th at moderately high sugar levels.

The grapes were destemmed and put into a small open top fermenter and cold soaked for three days before being inoculated with yeast.  After an eleven day fermentation period the wine was pressed off and settled in a small tank. The wine was then transferred to neutral cooperage and later transferred to some stainless steel drums to preserve some of the fruity aromatics of the wine.  The wine was bottled in mid- February.

The nose of the wine is predominantly that of dried strawberries with a dusty cinnamon quality in the background.  On the palate, the wine has similar flavors which are cut somewhat short by moderate and silky tannins.  The finish is also slightly tannic with a persistence provided by the acidity of the wine.  Unlike previous bottlings of Grenache this wine will benefit from several months to two years of further bottle aging to round out the tannins.

Serve with grilled meats, sausage, and Dodger dogs!

Rick Longoria, Winemaker
June 1, 2006

Composition: 100% Grenache - Alisos Vineyard

Production:  96 cases
Alcohol by volume:  13.9%

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