2015 BOOTLEGGER’S HILL PINOT NOIR
VINTAGE NOTES
The 2015 growing season marked the fourth consecutive year of record-breaking drought in California, which provided little water for the vines during their winter dormancy. Budbreak came early in March due to a couple of dry and sunny months, and was shortly followed by the biggest storm of the season.
The young buds survived the heavy rain but just a few weeks later suffered crop damaged due to windy conditions during fruit set. This was the first major setback of the vintage, drastically reducing the number of berries per cluster.
As the long, arid summer progressed, it was clear the vines were exhausted from pushing through years of drought. Yields further decreased to 40-50% of the average.
The small harvest proved precarious for our production team, as most vineyard blocks picked were well below their average and consequently, below the capacity of our fermentation tanks. Ensuring we preserved the identity and character of each clone or block was imperative to team. This meant that close to 90% of all fruit was fermented in microfermenters, 1-1.5 ton vessels, which essentially quadrupled the amount of man power needed to manage fermentations.
The redeeming feature of harvest was by far the phenomenal quality of the fruit. In all our vintages, never have we seen such compact, intensely flavored fruit. Though we wish we had more, we’re looking forward to sharing these densely structured and captivatingly balanced wines with you.
TASTING NOTES
Nose: Soft notes of gardenia, grapefruit blossom and fresh lemon zest compliment the subtle hints of lavender and fennel seed.
Mouth: Focused, with an expansive midpalate that highlights the balanced acid and fine tannins.
”The redeeming feature of harvest was by far the phenomenal quality of the fruit. In all our vintages, never have we seen such compact, intensely flavored fruit.”
WHY WE HOLD OUR WINES BACK
Our plan was always to release the wines once they had time to develop. We’ve always believed that a little extra time in our cellar makes the experience a little better in yours. While these wines are enjoyable now, they will certainly benefit from age and cellar gracefully over the coming years. If possible, we recommend decanting before enjoying.
TECHNICAL DATA
Harvest Dates: 9/5/15 till 9/13/15
Clones: 115, 23, 37, 667, CC, Elite, Pommard
Alcohol: 14.0% pH: 3.63 Acidity: 6.15
Production: 1232 c/s Yield per acre: 2.1 tons
