Nose
Lifted florals, dark plum, cherry, earth, cedar
Palate
Chalky tannin, complex, structured, long finish
Harvest
A tricky season commencing with early bud break and strong growth. A cool, wet November impacted fruit set, resulting in reduced yields. Early summer was hot and dry, but February brought more cool, wet conditions until some dry, warm March days which helped ripen the reds. Organic farming had the vineyard in terrific shape to deal with the season's challenges.
Winemaking
Hand-harvested bunches of Merlot were de-stemmed but not crushed, in order to preserve the whole berries, before being transferred to a combination of static concrete and open fermenters. Daily plunges and pumpovers were used to evolve tannin extraction, before pressing and maturing for 13 months in French oak, prior to blending and bottling in October 2022.
Appearance
Vibrant crimson red
Food Pairing
Beef carpaccio or pork terrine