Blend: Merlot
Analysis:
Alcohol: 14.5% | PH: 3.80 | Titratable acidity: 6.09 g/L
Bottling Date: June 2017
Cellaring: 5 + years
Tasting Notes:
Loads of ripe baked plum, black cherry, red berries, licorice and clove spice with complex notes of shortbread, dried sage, cedar and hints of leather in the background. The palate is dry and full bodied with balanced acidity and firm ripe tannins that give structure for aging. Blackberry, black plum, dark chocolate and pie crust with savory leather notes and orange zest make for a complex palate with a long finish that will age for a decade.
Wine Making:
The 2015 growing season was another exceptional year that started in April and followed by unusual heat in June producing vines with concentrated grape clusters. The summer months allowed for even ripening followed by one of the South Okanagan's legendary dry autumns. Warm days promoted the ripening process while cool nights balanced the ripeness with acidity. The grapes were harvested by hand from Burrowing Owl Estate Vineyards in Oliver and Osoyoos mid October. The grapes were sorted by hand, destemmed and gently crushed before being gravity fed into stainless steel tanks for cold soak (4 days) and alcoholic fermentation (10 days). Both 'free run' and 'pressed' wine were then moved into barrels for malolactic fermentation followed by ageing for 18 months. The selection of barrels helped round out the tannins and contribute to complex notes such as smokey, savory and spice. After the blending of barrels the wine was bottled unfiltered and left to mature in bottle until its release.
Ageing: 65% French oak, 18% American, 10% Hungarian, 7% Russian; 23% new oak barrels
