2004 GRENACHE “PURISIMA MOUNTAIN VINEYARD”
- Notes Coming Soon
2004 GRENACHE “PURISIMA MOUNTAIN VINEYARD”
This wine is 90% Grenache and 10% Syrah all from the Purisima Mountain
Vineyard in the hills just west of the town of Los Olivos. The vineyard is
owned by the Beckmen family, who in the last five years has evolved this
vineyard into one of the best on the Central Coast. Those of you paying
attention know that we produced wonderful Grenache from this vineyard in
2000, 2001 and 2002, but not in 2003 (too little crop). This ’04 is similar
to the delicious ’01.
We used five barrels of Grenache “Tablas Clone,” two barrels of Grenache
“Clone 3” and forty gallons of syrah to make the blend.
The various lots were fermented in small open top fermenters with manual
punchdown twice a day. Aging was in neutral French oak barrels for 10
months. Grenache tends to oxidize easily so we don’t rack and aerate it like
we do Syrah. Co-winemaker Jim Adelman says that Grenache gives Rhône
producers a taste of how difficult it is to make Pinot Noir. It is a
temperamental variety in the vineyard and in the cellar, but when it’s
right, it is delicious elixir.
This ’04 is juicy, sappy, spicy Grenache with hints of wild cherry, thyme,
and pepper. The flavors follow the aromas, wrapped around bright acidity and
modest tannins. It’s a big wine but still under 15% alcohol, somewhat modest
for Grenache, it carries itself well.
178 cases were bottled in August 2005.