SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS, MONTEREY COUNTY:
The Santa Lucia Highlands AVA is arguably the most consistent, high tier region for Pinot Noir in the world. A unique yet amazing combination of a dry, arid climate combined with the cool, coastal influence is a dichotomy that challenges conventional farming methods and opens the door to creating profound Pinot Noir. While the Santa Lucia Highlands lack the typical cool climate characteristics of ample fog and rainfall, the desert conditions, afternoon winds, elevation, and sandy loam soils yield extremely small berries with thick skins and small seeds. The resulting wines are very dark, rich, and opulent in style.
2017 GROWING SEASON:
The 2017 growing season began with an abundance of winter rainfall. The overall growing season brought a nice spring with uniform growth and a healthy fruit set, about 15 percent above what we were expecting. Veraison came in late July and happened very quickly. August was cool, with a consistent marine layer. The early September heat spike brought record temperatures, but after the heat the fruit fared well. Shortly after the heat wave, the vines were stressed and sugars, phenolics, and acids looked great so we picked all fruit by late September.
WINEMAKER NOTES:
Both punch-down and pump-over techniques are used to ensure balanced extraction of flavor, aromatics, structure and color. To allow both the sweet and structural influences from the barrels to intermingle seamlessly with the rich fruit and ripe tannins of the wine, we aged Böen in 100% French oak (60% new) for nine months with limited use of S02 to maintain the phenolic profile.
TASTING NOTES:
COLOR: Rich, dark garnet.
AROMATICS: Abundant fruit notes of blackberry, cherry, and strawberry followed by hints of wild herb and rich dark chocolate.
PALATE: Smooth with flavors of ripe plum, black currant jam, and strawberry filling well balanced with roasted almonds and a touch of vanilla. Bright acidity and soft tannins lead to a long, satisfying finish.
FOOD PAIRING:
Slow roasted lamb with grilled vegetables, rosemary chicken with roasted potatoes, or dark chocolate covered strawberries.