2018 Adattamento

Blend Composition | 50% Sangiovese, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation | Estate St. Helena Vineyard and Napa Valley 
Harvest Date | October 3 (Sangiovese), and October 14 (Cabernet Sauvignon)
Finished pH | 3.81
Finished TA | 5.6 g/L
Alcohol by Volume | 14.6% 
Production | 96 cases

VINTAGE
The 2018 growing season got a relatively late start due to a cool and blessedly rainy Spring.  Summer temperatures remained moderate, with a brief and relatively mild heat spike at the end of July.  Our harvest began 15 days later than in 2017, and proceeded at a slow and steady pace, affording us the luxury of picking at peak flavor develeopment and relatively low Brix.  Our last pick was on November 6, setting a record for our latest harvest.  Yields were up relative to the last several years and the quality is outstanding.

WINEMAKING
We produce our Sangiovese from a variety of clonal selections, enhancing the complexity of the finished wine. The Cabernet Sauvignon in this wine came from a neighboring estate vineyard in the St Helena AVA. In the winery we handle the fruit gently, destemming without crushing the berries. We tailor our cap-management techniques to achieve the desired structure and color without overextraction. This wine matured in barrel for 28 months.

TASTING NOTES

This intensely colored wine appears seems to be brooding in the glass, holding its secrets close. The aromas imparted by the new French oak (50%) barrels are marked but well integrated, lending notes of dark roast coffee and milk chocolate. The wine offers classic flavors of red- and blackcurrant, blackberry, raspberry, sage, black cherry, and toasted almond, along with hints of vanilla, cedar, and cocoa. On the palate the wine is satiny and silky. The lingering finish reveals something new with each taste.

PAIRINGS
Enjoy with a charcoal grilled Porterhouse steak or bone-in pork chop.

- Matt Reid, Winemaker