2005 Vintage – $19

Fruit sourcing
Crawford Vineyard, Yakima Valley – The grapes for this wine come from Crawford vineyard, which is located just north of Prosser.  It is perhaps the best Syrah vineyard in the Yakima Valley.  In this wine you’ll find aromas of black cherries, leather and pepper along with raspberry, blackberry and chocolate flavors followed by vanilla and fresh aromatic herb notes on the finish.

Harvest and winemaking notes
We harvested this Syrah at full flavor maturity.  The fall of 2005 was the coolest since we began making this wine in 2002.  Cool evenings gave us the opportunity to allow the fruit to hang on the vine and intensify in flavor. The grapes were carefully picked, gently destemmed and allowed to cold macerate for four days.  After 34 days of skin contact and about 2% sugar remaining, the grapes were lightly pressed and then the wine transferred to French oak barrels (25% new) to finish fermentation and age for 14 months.  It was racked four times to achieve clarity and stability and bottled unfined.  289 cases produced.

Winemaker and pairing notes
The result is a richly flavored, full-bodied, and balanced wine which will compliment many foods.  Pair it with boldly flavored foods like smoked meats, Oaxacan mole, winter vegetable and mushroom stew or  pan seared rib eye steak with a wine sauce.