O'Neel Ranch, Russian River Valley
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This
wine is from a vineyard along the Santa Rosa Creek a mile west of town.
It was pressed whole-cluster and the juice was settled for several
days. We carefully racked the clear juice to used French oak barrels
where it was
inoculated. Most of our wines are fermented with native or indigenous
yeast, but we don't ferment Sauvignon Blanc that way. We use a
low-vigor yeast that has been shown to release
the aromatic compounds characteristic of Sauvignon Blanc from their
precursors. Also, native or indigenous yeast fermentations work best
with a
relatively high level of grape solids and fermentation with solids
tends to obscure the Sauvignon varietal character. I want the varietal
character to be the focus of this wine so I don't want to ferment this
wine with a lot of solids. Malolactic fermentation covers up the
Sauvignon character so I don't let malolactic go either. The finished
wine is complex with subtle hay, melon and pear notes. It is relatively
low in alcohol and retains the crisp acidity of the
cool-climate site. It's perfect with oysters raw or seafood on the grill!
$22 per bottle.
$264 per case.
2010 vintage NEW RELEASE
215 cases, bottled April 27, 2011
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2008 vintage:
89 Stephen Tanzer's INTERNATIONAL WINE CELLAR, May/June 2010
"Lively lemon, green apple and minerals on the nose, with a hint of herbs. Restrained and refreshingly nervy, with good finishing grip ... seems more Old World than New."
89 One Puff Connoisseur's Guide to California
Wine, August 2009
"A racy nose of figs and fresh-melon fruit sets
this one out on a fine start, and the wine's moderately rich,
crisp-leaning flavors are similarly keyed on lively young fruit...."
2007 vintage:
89 Wine Spectator, Web 2008 "Vibrant and tangy, with delicious Golden Apple, tart lemon meringue, passion fruit and lime. Intense and flavorful."
2006 vintage:
90 Wine & Spirits, June 2008 - Year's Best "Clean, fresh flavors of nectarine and peach round out this ripe, fleshy sauvignon."
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