2005 Oregon White Riesling
Willamette Valley

TASTING NOTES
This semi-sweet, Spatlese-style Riesling exhibits aromas of honeysuckle and pear followed by crisp apple-like flavors accented by honey and floral notes. A cold, wet April delayed bud break, but then came the scorching July heat wave. We had 21 days over 90 degrees, which was only two days short of the all-time record. These vineyard blocks of Riesling were some of the oldest in the Willamette Valley (planted in the mid-1970's).

TECHNICAL DATA
Alcohol:11%
T.A.: 8.2g/L
pH: 2.81
RS: 3%
Production: 2,500 cases

THE GROWING SEASON
What can we say--2005 was an unprecedented seventh vintage in a row where our northern Willamette grapes reached full maturity through the temperate summer weather, and the winter rains held off until after the harvest was completed. Nature once again gave us fully ripe fruit with concentrated flavors and excellent sugar levels.

VINIFICATION
All the grapes used in this wine were destemmed, crushed, and immediately pressed. The juice was then moved to temperature controlled stainless steel fermentation tanks and inoculated with Prisse de Mousse yeast. The ability to control the cool fermentation temperature during the next two months was critically important for enhancing the finished wine's delicate aromas and flavors. After eight weeks at 52 degrees F., the fermentation was stopped with 3% residual sweetness in the finished wine.

WINEMAKER NOTES
Our winemaking approach with the Chardonnay grape focuses on careful fruit selection, minimal juice handling and minimal sulfur dioxide use. True to our style, attentions to detail throughout the aging of our wines influence the final quality of our products. We produced an elegant, sophisticated style of Chardonnay with crisp and complex fruit flavors and Burgundian-like structure.