Bouchaine’s 100-acre estate vineyard lies on the southern border of Napa Valley’s Carneros district, overlooking the San Francisco bay with the financial district in the distance. Fog, wind, and the cold nightime temperatures of this unique geographical area lend a distinctive regional identity to our Pinot Noir.
Growing Season
The growing season of 2022 will ultimately be defined by the 5-day heat wave we experienced in early September. Thankfully, our crop was ready to be harvested. The heat condensed the time frame of harvest and the winery filled up quickly. Prior to the heat, the growing season in Carneros was highlighted only by its cool breezes and morning fog. With all of these factors combined, Bouchaine was able to capture the fresh acidity we know and love, while also extracting velvety structure and depth of flavor in the wines.
Vinification
Post fermentation, the free run wine is drawn off to barrel where it completes malolactic fermentation and integrates with the oak flavors from French barrels. One midseason racking is performed to assemble the blend. The wine is then returned to barrel to allow the blend to marry before bottling.
Tasting Notes
Each sip of this wine brings a word association game to mind. Swan Clone . . . Swan Lake . . . Ballet . . . Ballet Dancers . . . Graceful. And like the ballet dancers themselves, this wine has a gracefulness to the palate with the structure to support it. A wine that is light on its feet, evoking flavors and aromas of just-ripe strawberry, fresh cherry, and cinnamon. Each time you open a bottle is an opening-night not to be missed.
