What a treat it is to make a varietal Grenache every year! Actually, we never feel that way during the growing season, when we're out in the vineyard thinning shoots and dropping crop in an effort to keep up with all that needs to be done to control Grenache's vigor and ensure the flavors we want. It's always exciting at harvest, though! This is our fourth vintage of this wine, and we took a very minimalist approach in the cellar in 2002, including never racking the wine until bottling to preserve as much of that pure Grenache deliciousness as possible. As our vines get older, we're noticing the influence of plum and black cherry aromas and flavors in the wine, in addition to the usual bright strawberry character. There is a terrific juiciness, and a Chinese 5-spice and wet stone note in the flavors of this wine. We blended in 5% Mourvedre and 5% Syrah to round out the wine's finish. Production is still small and the demand is high for this wine, so there is a 6 bottle limit on the 2002 Grenache.

Estate Vineyard Block: Grenache South, Syrah North and East Slopes, Mourvedre

Blend: 90% Grenache, 5% Mourvedre, 5% Syrah

14.3% alcohol

Price: $22

Cases Produced: 129

Tasting Note: Aromas of strawberry, black cherry, and Chinese 5-spice mingle with flavors showing terrific juiciness, wet stone notes, cocoa, soft tannin, and rich acidity on the long finish.

Click here to read about our 2001 Grenache.