2006 VENTANA SYRAH

DOUBLE GOLD/BEST OF CLASS
Monterey County Fair Wine Competition 2008

The Ventana is a 400+ acre vineyard in the heart of the Arroyo Seco American Viticultural Area, Monterey County, California. The soil is primarily a calcareous composition of alluvial deposit with rock and gravel that support excellent drainage.

Syrah, when grown in a cool growing region such as Arroyo Seco, shows unique black-pepper qualities that can be lost in warmer regions. Our winemaking procedures enhance this varietals quality. We hand-select only the ripest clusters, de-stem and place them into open-top fermentors that allow some of the alcohol from the higher sugar grapes to vent off. The cap is hand-punched several times each day during initial fermentation. We wish to keep the alcohol no more than 14.20% to ensure the dark fruit and black pepper nose are the most prevalent components in the bouquet. Once open-top fermentation ceases, we transfer the wine to American Minnesotan tight grained oak for barrel ageing.