Tasting Notes:Fruity flavors of orange blossoms, grapefruits, mangos, peaches, and pear are balanced by nutmeg and a hint of minerals. This medium bodied,broadly focused wine stays light on its feet as it goes down with a crisp, dry character and leaves a lingering presence on the palate. This wine would compliment boldly flavored foods such as pesto, shellfish,ceviche, and chicken dishes.
Winemaking Notes:Following a gentle whole cluster pressing, Pinot Gris is cold fermented in stainless steel to preserve the freshness of the fruit. After fermentation, the wine is racked into three year-old French oak barrels for three months to soften the texture slightly and add complexity without oak flavors. The wine was bottled in March 2008 to capture the bright flavors and crisp acidity.
Vintage Notes:Although 2007 saw the typically cool, windy growing period of the Santa Lucia Highlands, this vintage retains a more intense flavor due to unusually high stress on the vines from an unusually dry winter preceding a cold, wet spring.
Vineyard Information:The R&D Franscioni Vineyard is directly across from Rosella’s Vineyard in the northern end of the Santa Lucia Highlands on sandy loam soils on the east-facing bench lands overlooking the Salinas Valley. The Santa Lucia Highlands region is rated Zone 1 (coolest) on the UC Davis scale and summer daytime high temperatures average in the mid-70’s.
Technical Notes: | Appellation: | Santa Lucia Highlands |
| Vineyard: | R & D Franscioni Vineyard |
| Varietal: | Pinot Gris | Grigio % |
| RS: | 6.0 g/L |