2003 Meritage - Red Wine •

The red Meritage is a new wine for us. We decided to blend our 2003 Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to make this delightful Meritage. The Cabernet and 75% of the Merlot comes from the Rhodes Vineyard in Redwood Valley, which is owned by Richard and Annette Rhodes. Their Cabernet vines were planted in 1916. The other 25% of the Merlot came from the Cerise Vineyard owned by Cherry and Lindsay Jones, located on a south-facing slope in Anderson Valley.

The grapes were crushed and then cold soaked for 72 hours before being inoculated with yeast. After fermentation they are gently pressed and placed in French Oak barrels. A malolactic bacteria is added to induce a second fermentation. The wine was then aged for 17 months before being bottled.

This is a wine with a deep garnet color and full ripe fruit aroma. The Meritage has dark fruit flavors of plum and cherry. It is a balanced complex wine, which you can drink now or put down for many years.

Total production 391 cases

Technical Stuff

VA 0.050
TA 0.703
pH 3.44

Alcohol 14.5%

Silver Medal - 2006 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition