Villa Mt. Eden - Red Wines

Villa Mt. Eden 2008 Pinot Noir - Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 16:31:00 GMT

Villa Mt. Eden 2008 Pinot Noir - Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley" border="0" hspace="3">

Villa Mt. Eden 2008 Pinot Noir - Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley
Buy Now: $22.00

Tasting Notes
“Dark ruby red in color,this Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir displays aromas of blueberry andcherry, leading to flavor notes of blackberry, plum, caramel, redlicorice, cedar, and chocolate. As the palate deepens, notes ofearth, forest floor, mushroom, and tobacco leaf emerge. This is acomplex wine with a well-balanced body, soft tannins, and a long,fruity finish." – Armando De Santiago, Winemaker

Vineyards

Bien Nacido Vineyards, located in California’s Santa MariaValley, is one of America’s great “grand cru” vineyards. Itsowners, the Miller family, custom-farm each block; Villa Mt. Eden,one of the largest and oldest buyers of Bien Nacido fruit, has beenworking with the Millers since 1992.
While most valleys in California’s winegrowing regions runnorth and south, the Santa Maria Valley runs west to east,channeling Pacific Ocean breezes and fog into Bien Nacido in themorning and evening and offering ideal conditions forcool-climate-loving Pinot Noir. Because of the cooler conditions,Santa Maria Valley has one of the longest growing seasons in thestate, allowing the fruit to ripen at a slow, steady pace andretain its natural acidity.
2008 was a year of weather ups and downs in the Santa MariaValley, beginning with a long, cold winter that pushed bud break tothe first week of March, three weeks later than normal. Warmerweather in April heated the soil and enhanced vine growth, but aheavy frost in the third week of April caused some damage in SantaBarbara County. The temperature swung again in June with a spell ofhot weather that reached to 110 degrees and had the positive effectof reducing the berry size, resulting in deeply concentrated wines.The marine influence of Santa Maria’s cool breezes lowered thetemperature in July, slowing down the last stages of maturity andleading to a normal harvest.

Winemaking

Fruit was hand-picked in the chill of the night, when grapesare at their freshest, and delivered to the winery in arefrigerated truck. The whole clusters were destemmed and lightlycrushed, maximizing the fruit-forward intensity.
A short cold-soaking period further brought out the brightfruit character, and fermentation followed in stainless steeltanks. Gentle pumpovers and “rack and return” methods kept theskins in contact with the juice without over-extraction oftannins.
The wine was moved to French oak barrels (35% new), for a14-month aging period, during which it gained depth, texture andcomplex notes of caramel and spice.

Technical Information

Total acidity: 0.56g/ml
pH: 3.77
Alcohol: 13.5%
Blend: 100% Pinot Noir

Visit Red Wines to see additional products in this category.

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:26:00 GMT

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley" border="0" hspace="3">

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley
Buy Now: $18.00

Tasting Notes

“Aromas of bright cherries and blackberries lead tohints of sweet vanilla oak, mocha, white pepper, spice, and rosepetals. The palate is rich with flavors of cherry, ripe fruit, andblackberries, with notes of white pepper and firm tannins on thelong, fruity finish. This is a wine that can be enjoyed now orcellared for years to come.”

Vineyards

The 2007 growing season was predominantly dry and cool, with aheat spike in late August that helped the vines accumulate sugarsand conserve natural acidity. The temperate weather led to smallclusters and berries of great quality, with balanced ripeness anddeveloped tannins.
Fruit from Tall Trees Vineyard in the Yountvillesub-appellation of Napa Valley forms the backbone of thiswine.
The vines thrive in a complex mosaic of soils that includessedimentary, alluvial, sandy, loamy and clay components, and arecooled by breezes from San Pablo Bay to the south.

Winemaking

The grapes were hand-picked at night, when grapes are cool tothe touch and at their freshest. The whole clusters were destemmed,with minimal crushing, to maximize fruit intensity.
Gentle pumpovers and “rack and return” techniques were usedduring the primary fermentation period to keep the skins in contactwith the juice for both flavor and color development, yet withoutan over-extraction of tannins.
After a secondary malolactic fermentation, the wine was rackedto 40% new French and American oak barrels and aged for 24 months,then bottled.

Technical Data

Total Acidity: 0.57g/100ml
pH: 3.78
Alcohol: 14.5%
Blend: 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Syrah, 4% Cabernet Franc,2% Petit Verdot, 1% Merlot

Visit Red Wines to see additional products in this category.

Villa Mt. Eden 2009 Pinot Noir - Sonoma Coast

Tue, 8 Feb 2011 16:35:00 GMT

Villa Mt. Eden 2009 Pinot Noir - Sonoma Coast" border="0" hspace="3">

Villa Mt. Eden 2009 Pinot Noir - Sonoma Coast
Buy Now: $20.00

TastingNotes
“Aromas of cherries, strawberries and cola lead torich and complex flavors of red fruit with an earthy accent note.This medium-bodied Pinot Noir exhibits refined acidity and soft,well-structured tannins. A complex and elegant wine, with alingering, seductive finish.”
– Armando De Santiago, Winemaker

Winemaking

In keeping with the Villa Mt. Eden philosophy that wine grapesshould be harvested at the ideal moment, the grapes werehand-picked at night, when grapes are cool to the touch and attheir freshest. Fruit was cold-soaked for three days, thenfermented in 6-ton open-top fermenters. The must was inoculatedwith different yeast strains, followed by a regime of twice-dailypunch-downs.

At dryness, the wine was racked and pressed. It was put into Frenchoak barrels (30% new) to highlight and maintain the naturalelegance of the wine. The wine was kept in separated lots and agedfor 12 months. When aging was complete, each lot was tasted andselections were made to create the optimal blend.

Vineyards

The Sonoma Coast appellation stretches the length of Californiacoastline between Mendocino in the North and Marin in the South.Known for its gorgeous landscape, which is subject to equal partssun and fog, the Sonoma Coast AVA produces Pinot Noirs that arebright and lively, with beautiful red fruit flavors.

Our 2009 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is sourced from four highlyregarded vineyards representing specific locations within theappellation: Diamond Creek and Domaine Chandon in the southern areaof Carneros; Champlin Creek, located mid-appellation at PetalumaGap; and the northern Russian River Hearth vineyard of Cutrer VineHills.

Specific clones were selected from each vineyard site to capturethe best attributes of the soils and vineyard terroir. The 2009growing season was most notable for its mild summer. The weatherwarmed up significantly in September. This combination helpedmaintain the natural acidity of the grapes, resulting inwell-balanced wines with vibrant aromas.

Technical Information

Total acidity: 0.57g/ml
pH: 3.82
Alcohol: 13.5%
Blend: 100% Pinot Noir

Visit Red Wines to see additional products in this category.

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Pinot Noir - Russian River Valley

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:44:00 GMT

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Pinot Noir - Russian River Valley" border="0" hspace="3">

Villa Mt. Eden 2007 Pinot Noir - Russian River Valley
Buy Now: $24.00

TastingNotes
“Sweet strawberry, cherry and toffee notes are lacedwith spiced tea, soft oak, and cranberry accents. Silky tanninsjoin a long, berry fruit finish.”
– Armando De Santiago, Winemaker

Winemaking

Clusters of ripe, handpicked grapes were destemmed with minimalcrushing to maximize fruit-forward intensity and fleshy, fruitcharacters in the finished wine.
A four-day cold soak prior to the onset of primary fermentationresulted in lively fruit aromas, beautiful color, and concentratedflavors.
Gentle cap management during primary fermentation resulted in awine with fleshier, richer body.
Secondary malolactic fermentation occurred in-barrel to providean integrated creme brulee, toffee-like character.

Vineyards

Placida Vineyard is located in the heart of the Russian RiverValley. The vineyard was planted and is impeccably managed by“Chuy” Ordaz.
Ordaz named the vineyard after his grandmother and daughter. InSpanish, the name “Placida” connotes grace and inner strength -qualities highly sought after in Pinot Noir.
The nine-acre vineyard is densely planted to several Pinot Noirclones which are ideally suited to the highly-regarded Goldridgesandy loam soil series of this vineyard. Clones include Swan, 777,667 and Pommard.
Great wines are born in Goldridge soils because they areextremely well-drained and infertile. These non-vigorous,self-regulating vineyards produce wines with depth andfinesse.
The Russian River growing region covers 150 square miles, withalmost 30% dedicated to Pinot Noir. Influenced by the cool, coastalfog, warm days and cool nights, it preserves the fruit’s fragrance,natural acidity and delicate flavors.

Technical Information

Total acidity: 0.56g/ml
pH: 3.77
Alcohol: 13.5%
Blend: 100% Pinot Noir

Visit Red Wines to see additional products in this category.