Yorkville Cellars 2004 Merlot, Rennie Vineyard

Winemaker Tasting Notes:
Medium-full bodied red with bright fruit flavors of blueberry and cassis. Aromas of anise, brown spice, a hint of new leather. Some tannins in finish with a note of white pepper.

Vineyard Notes:
Grapes were gently crushed, controlling berry breakage as much as possible. The must was put in open top fermenters, and given three days of cold soaking before inoculation with yeast. Fermentation was held at 80 degrees F, and continued until dryness, about 1215 days. The tanks were drained and pomace hand transferred to the press where it received a gentle pressing. All wine was combined in a tank and allowed to settle for 24 hours, then racked into oak cooperage for ageing. This wine was aged 18 months in 87% French oak. The wines were then racked into a tank, fined with organic eggwhites, and loosely filtered before bottling.

Technical Notes:

Appellation:	Yorkville Highlands
Varietal Content:	75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon
Harvest Date:	October 27, 2004
Alcohol:	13.5%
TA:	0.74 g/100ml
pH:	3.22
RS:	0.6%
Free sulfite at bottling:	30 parts per million