Palate
Semillon, the fruit is rich rather than ripe and the wine is luscious and well-rounded with good length. In spite of the sweetness of the fruit, this is one of the driest Semillons made at the vineyard. The wine shows restrained grassy aromas on the nose and is fresh, clean and lively on the palate. Although it displays evidence of regional character, the 1989 wine is more delicate than previous vintages of the Moss Wood Semillon. It is elegant, beautifully balanced and flavoursome with a lovely mouth feel and a lingering aftertaste.
Growing Conditions
An unheard of four inches of rain in February meant that the 1989 vintage was almost four weeks late. This caused some botrytis problems with the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay. As they would have adversely affected the finished wines, the botrytised grapes had to be picked out with these varieties. This was not considered necessary with the Semillon as only about one to two percent of the crop was affected and the impact of the botrytis was likely to enhance the wine. It did, however, result in the wine becoming higher in alcohol than usual – 13% – and developing in a different style from the herbaceous Moss Wood Semillons of 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1988.
Bottling
5/8/1989
