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Wine Details
Price:
$40.00 per bottle
Description:
The 2003 vintage and growing season was not normal. In fact, there has not been a normal vintage for many years. A late budbreak, followed by late spring rains, delayed the flowering and set of the fruit. A moderately cool summer foretold of a late harvest. However, a few late August and early September “blasts” of heat, coupled with extremely unseasonable thunder and lightning storms, brought the crop in on average of the same time as 2002. Winemaking: This wine represents the finest Zinfandel we produce at Benessere from our Estate vineyards. We carefully thin each vine in the vineyard from a potential of 5+ tons per acre down to less than 2.4, thereby maximizing the flavors developed by the remaining fruit. Harvesting at maximum ripeness, without developing port-like characteristics is crucial. Concentration is the hallmark of this vineyard. Gentle handling into our open-topped fermentors and hand-punching the skins into the juice allow the intensity of flavor in the skins to slowly release into the wine. After 31 days on the skins, we pressed the wine into a combination of new, tight-grained American oak and once-used French oak barrels. Decanted twice from the barrel, this wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered on June 1, 2005. Tasting notes: Dark ruby/purple in color, the seductive aromatics of raspberries and cherry jam, mingle with a creamy vanilla-custard. Distinctively rich and pure in aroma and flavor, the ripe cherry/raspberry and chocolate malt flavors integrate well with toasty oak and spice. Pair this wine with aged beef and dry jack cheese. The substantial structure will allow this wine to age well for the next ten-plus years.
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