2008
ROSÉ
California Table Wine
Our move away from using saignée (drawing juice off a red wine
tank before it initiates fermentation) as a winemaking technique
has benefited our red wines, as they are now less clunky and tannic.
Interestingly, it has also helped our rosé in the same sort of
way. A number of years ago the rosés seemed too heavy, but by
harvesting earlier and using the typical white wine technique
of whole-cluster pressing, we are able to produce a wine that
is alive and food friendly. The wine has a delicate salmon cast,
a captivating, complex aroma, and lots of savory flavor.
The core of this wine comes from a section of Roll Ranch syrah
that we have not used in our Roll bottling for years. It was farmed
as usual, yielding a meager 2.5 tons per acre, and was harvested
at a relatively low sugar level of 22 degrees Brix. We barrel
fermented the juice in older wood and produced a very minerally-textured
rosé that was a delight to the palate. We also took a selection
of grenache and mourvedre fruit, pressing and barrel fermenting
it as well. The final blend came together with the addition of
a barrel of sauvignon blanc, my secret ingredient that gives the
rosé a zestiness that makes it especially food friendly.
Press Reviews
Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Jun 09
“Pale, silver-pink. Mineral-driven aromas of redcurrant, lime and honeysuckle. Light-bodied citrus and red berry flavors are refreshingly dry, with very good back-end cut and thrust. The finish is strikingly pure and tangy, leaving pink grapefruit and bitter pomegranate notes in its wake. This clean, penetrating wine would be great with raw shellfish or with nothing at all.” ( 89 points )
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Nov/Dec 09
“(a blend of syrah, grenache and mourvedre) Pale pink. Racy, sharply etched pink grapefruit and strawberry aromas are complicated by honeysuckle and white pepper. Tightly wound citrus and red berry flavors show an impressively delicate, balanced personality, with tangy mineral lift and cut. This is one of the most precise and lithe pink wines I tasted this year, from anywhere.” ( 92 points )