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Wine Details
Price:
$25.00 per bottle
Description:
A blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre from an Eleven Acre vineyard in Paso Robles, named the Brave Oak Vineyard. We have a long-term lease/contract for these eleven acres of Grenache (4 acres), Syrah (4 acres), and Mourvedre (3 acres). In fact, we had the vineyard custom planted for us back in 2001, with the 2003 being the first significant crop. We carefully selected French clones for the Grenache and Mourvedre that had a track record for smaller crops and turning out wines of high class and distinction. For the Syrah we stayed with what Paso Robles does best and stuck with the Estrella River clone that is the first clone of Syrah to be planted in the Central Coast (the same clone as our Roasted Slope Vineyard Syrah). So, this is my first attempt at a delicious blended red from this vineyard, fashioned in the same way as our Esperance, but with a taste that is uniquely from this vineyard. While our Esperance tends to have tighter flavors and brighter acidity, this wine comes from a much riper location that favors rich flavors and higher alcohols with lower acidity. This makes for a wine that is a real pleasure to drink…even right now. The ELEVEN has a full and round mouthfeel, with flavors and aromas of black cherries, currants, black pepper and a floral note that comes from the wonderfully ripe Mourvedre. On to the obvious, YES, the wine is finished with the sometimes controversial Stelvin closure, and YES, I am still quite serious about bottling more of our wines this way. This is a very isolated test, where we bottled 100% of the wine in the “screwcap” to ensure the freshest, fruitiest, and taint-free wine possible. We took this so seriously that we then aged the wine for ELEVEN months in the bottle prior to release, to make sure that the closures are sound and the wine will still evolve with a screwcap on top. Guess what, the wine has evolved beautifully. It has the most pleasantly soft tannins and ripe flavors that I suggest you taste this bottle right away .
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Varietal Definition
Syrah:
Syrah is the eight hundred pound gorilla of Rhone grapes! In the vineyard and the winery, Syrah is typically an easy grape to work with - healthy, early ripening, resistant to mildew and rot; suitable for winemaking in a variety of styles. The wines from Syrah are tannic without being harsh. The wines will have a taste and smell of dark blue fruit like blackberries and blackcurrant, with a strong spicy side where one can find freshly ground pepper and other spices. Syrah is famous for its part in the French blends, such as Côtes du Rhone and Châteauneuf du Pape.
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Grenache:
Grenache Noir is the world’s most widely planted grape used to make red wine, sometimes made into a stand-alone varietal, frequently as a Rosé, but most often as a backbone of red blends. Its strength is its ability to grow in arid and windy conditions. It’s particularly suited to warm coastal regions of California, Spain and France. Grenache-based wines tend to be high in alcohol, with attractive fruit qualities in youth and a sweet berry character.Used as a component in some Northern Rhône reds, nearly exclusively for Rhône Rosés and as the primary component in nearly all Southern Rhône red blends, Grenache is probably most notable as the base varietal for Chateauneuf du Pape, Cotes du Rhône and Gigondas. In spite of its fame coming from French wines, Spain is most likely this grape’s origin.
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Mourvedre:
As long as the weather is warm, Mourvedre ably tolerates a wide variety of soils. It is popular across the south of France, especially in Provence, where it is responsible for the greatness of Bandol, and many a fine red Cotes-du-Rhone. It is often blended in Chateauneuf-du-Pape; Languedoc makes it as a varietal. Spain uses it in many areas, including Valencia. In the United States, Mourvedre remains a minor factor for now, pursued by a few wineries that specialize in Rhone-style wines. The wine it produces can be quite pleasing, with medium weight, spicy cherry and berry flavors and moderate tannins. It ages well.
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