Blend: 100% Viognier
Analysis:
Alcohol: 13.5% | PH: 3.38 | Titratable acidity: 4.91 g/L
Bottling Date: August 2023
Cellaring: 3+ years
Tasting Notes:
An intensely floral and aromatic Viognier with powerful aromas of honeysuckle and jasmine, poached pear, apricot and fresh lemon zest notes. The palate is dry, full-bodied, round and soft with medium acidity, a rich texture and flavours of Turkish Delight, coconut flakes, banana bread, papaya and lemon with a long, textural finish. Pair with steamed white fish topped with ginger, soy and fish sauce; crab cakes topped with a fresh herb salad or a chicken or coconut chickpea curry.
– Rhys Pender, Master of Wine
Wine Making:
The 2022 growing season will be remembered for its very late start and remarkable finish which allowed for an abundance of quality grapes grown and fine wines produced. An uncharacteristically cool spring resulted in bud break occurring in early May. With delays in fruit development by as much as three weeks, careful vineyard management and cooperative conditions
were needed to reach proper sugar levels and ideal natural acidity. The summer months were spectacular, offering the perfect amount of heat and sunshine to allow for our largest yield of grapes to date followed by an unbelievable fall heading into a condensed harvest that began in October.
On October 24, the Viognier grapes were hand-harvested from our Osoyoos vineyard. They were sorted and dropped whole clustered into a pneumatic press for gentle extraction. The juice was then gravity-fed, 75% into oak barrels and 25% into tank for fermentation. All of the wine was transferred into light to medium-minus toasted barrels for a total of 9 months of oak
ageing. A blend of barriques and 500L puncheons were utilized to add structure and highlight the fruit and aromas and malolactic fermentation was used to add complexity and flavour to 35% of the wine.
