The 2011 growing season was similar to 2010 in that it was relatively cool, with no significant heat spells during the season. We harvested in early September, well before the rain events of late September. The vineyard benefited from moderate weather through most of the growing season. The Voss Sauvignon Blanc developed beautifully during the warm summer days and typically cool evenings. We harvested for maturation over two nights in early September with the various vineyard blocks giving us a breadth of fruit profile.
Our pre dawn harvesting, when the fruit is at its coldest, helps to retain the vibrant Sauvignon Blanc aromas and flavors. Coupling this with holding the fruit on the skins for 24 hours before pressing results in very intense fruit flavors from our Rutherford vineyard. The juice was fermented at cool temperatures in stainless steel tanks over three weeks with selected yeasts that further enhanced the flavors. As in 2010, in 2011 we again experimented with a small portion of the wine fermented in neutral oak barrels (a two new oak barrels), about 10% of the total volume, to add additional mouth feel and texture to the wine. The wine was bottled on March 3rd 2012, using the ‘Stelvin’ closure.
