2004 VENTANA SAUVIGNON BLANC

VENTANA SAUVIGNON BLANC
This classic wine is made from a special clone of Sauvignon Blanc called the Ventana Clone of the Sauvignon Musque. Doug Meador completed the research for this clone in the late 1970's in his Ventana Vineyard. Clonal selection is very important in cooler growing regions such as ours. A vine may be Sauvignon Blanc but may not be suited to produce flavorful fruit in a cool region. The Sauvignon Musque clone performs magnificently in our cool region and rewards us with lively citrus and slightly grassy flavors.

The grapes are harvested from the Ventana Vineyard and immediately transferred to the pressing station where we use a Europress bladder press. This sophisticated pressing unit allows adjustable amounts of pressure for optimum juice quality. The juice is then pumped into tank for 36 to 48 hours of settling and then the clear juice is racked for fermentation. The juice is fermented in stainless steel and 50% is transferred into neutral barrels (oak barrels that no longer give off wood flavors) for aging. At Ventana, we have found that aging of the Sauvignon Blanc in barrel softens some of the natural acids found in this varietal. By using a neutral barrel we keep the lovely citrus tones without imparting flavors that come from oak.

The cool weather loving vines supply fruit which creates a wine with wonderful floral and citrus tones and a slightly grassy (specifically Timothy Hay) nose. The wine is completely dry with rich rounded texture and a flinty crispness. This is not a Chardonnay "want-to-be"; it is made in the classic French style for the best accompaniment to food. Sauvignon Blanc pairs very well with seafood. One of our favorites is Halibut with lemon beurre blanc.