2021 Chenin Blanc
Special Edition (SE)
Tres Hermanas Vineyard
Santa Barbara County
Alc. 11.0 % by vol.
The Vintage:
Overall we saw a cool and longer growing season than last vintage, which ran until early October. With the cooler overall temps for the region the grapes got to hang for an extra 3 weeks compared to 2020. But still very little rain gave us a little more concentration of the fruit.
The Process:
The grapes were hand harvested at night and brought to the winery in the early morning. We dump the fruit into the bladder press and run the press cycle for about 3 hours. The pressed juice is pumped directly to a steel tank and settles for two days. It is racked to neutral French oak barrels for fermentation. We let the juice naturally ferment over the course of 5-6 weeks. Around the three week mark, we consolidate the four barrels down to three. From here we top every two weeks and let the wine evolve. After 4 months, we add a small amount of Sulfur to freeze the Chenin in time. This will stop/ slow down the oxidation of the wine and let it evolve just a bit more in barrel up until bottling. After being in barrel for 7 months, we rack the wine to tank and bottle unfined and unfiltered.
The Wine:
Smelly Smell- Lemon Rind, Zippy Mandarin, Citrus Tart
Tasty Taste- Laser Beams, Limed-Stones, Apricot Pit
Additional Notes:
24 cases produced
Small amounts of Sulfur was added at month 5, 6, 7 and just before bottling
No stirring of the barrels
Minimal Intervention Winemaking - Less Is More