Merganser Dry Rosé

VINTAGE NOTES

2022 in Mendocino County was a good year for farming. Bud break was on the early side but avoided all potential frost damage with a warm spring. The summer was warm, but cooler than recent vintages with no extended heat waves that can cook the grapes. Generally, Mendocino has a slightly shorter growing season compared to Napa and Sonoma, so the wines show brighter, crisper notes.

VINEYARD NOTES

The grapes for the 2022 Dry Rosé are sourced from a small block of Sangiovese surrounding John Fetzer's home in Mendocino and made entirely of Sangiovese. Knowing that the Sangiovese was destined to be rosé we managed that block a little differently. Because we were not worried about color we did not thin fruit which helped to keep the sugar levels lower. The resulting wine is brighter, lighter and more food friendly – similar to a Provençal style rosé.

WINEMAKING PRACTICES

Our 2022 Dry Rosé is 100% Sangiovese grapes. The grapes are de-stemmed, but then sent straight to press with little to no skin to juice contact. This process helps to accentuate the lighter and brighter notes of Sangiovese. No heavy-handed oak or additives were used to mold this wine into something it is not. Instead, very little is done except to keep it clean and to allow the wine to become itself. The 2022 rosé is cold fermented in stainless steel. No skin contact further helped to amplify the minerality, while no malolactic fermentation and a short stainless steel elevage were choices designed to produce a crisp, lively food wine. With no fining involved in the production, this wine is a pure distillation of John Fetzer's vineyard in Mendocino, California.

WINEMAKER’S TASTING NOTES

This is a bright and lively Rosé. I get aromas and flavors of watermelon, strawberry and a hint of lemon thyme.

FOOD PAIRING NOTES

This Provençal-style rosé is perfect for a spring picnic or summer barbeque. It goes with just about anything, which is why I love this wine. Recently had it with a grapefruit iced oyster. Delicious and colors even matched.

VARIETAL COMPOSITION:

100% Sangiovese

APPELLATION: Mendocino County,CA

ALCOHOL: 13.5%

T.A. AT BOTTLING: 7.6 g/L

pH AT BOTTLING: 3.35

BRIX AT HARVEST: 22.0°

R.S.: less than 0.02%

COOPERAGE: Stainless steel

MALOLACTIC FERMENTATION: none

PRODUCTION:289 cases