Our wines

2004 Signature Selection Series Meritage, Temecula Valley

Growing Season

The 2004 vintage began with an early bud break followed by a brief period of relatively cold weather during berry set, which naturally limited crop loads and intensified the remaining fruit. A mild spring followed by a consistently warm summer pushed Harvest ahead of schedule by up to two weeks with some varietals, but the resulting fruit quality was excellent.

Winemaking

The small, individual lots of grapes comprising the 2004 Signature Selection Meritage were brought into the winery in the early morning hours where they were gently crushed and sent to small stainless steel fermentation tanks. After a “cold soak” period of 48-72 hours each lot was inoculated with a special strain of yeast, enhancing richness and varietal characteristic. During a 7-10 day fermentation each lot of wine was “pumped over” the cap of skins twice daily, extracting color, flavor and structure from skins. After an extended maceration of 14-21 days, the free-run wine was racked by gravity flow to new French oak barrels for ageing, during which malo-lactic fermentation took place, further softening the acidity of each wine. After 24 months in barrel the final blend was assembled and returned to barrel for an additional six months to allow for full integration of the components, all leading to a soft, rich and complex wine.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes

Our 2004 Signature Selection Meritage is rich and concentrated, offering complex aromas of currant, leather and black licorice with subtle notes of vanilla and cedar. Flavors of ripe blackberry and boysenberry are complemented by soft, supple tannins and a long, lingering finish.