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Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Balistreri Family Vineyard Freestone View Block Freestone(2005)
- Winery:
- J. A. Balistreri Vineyards
- Varietal:
- Pinot Noir
- Region:
- USA > California > Sonoma > Sonoma Coast
- Type:
- Color:
- Red
Tonnellerie Sirugue cooperage provided 36-month-air-dried French oak barrels with medium-plus toast. The barrels have a grain that is tightly formed and resulting in an elegant and complex flavor profile with warm spice characteristics. Fifty percent of the barrels were new, and the remaining were two- and three-year-used French oak. Each lot was pressed at approximately 3 degrees Brix and placed in barrel to complete secondary malolactic fermentation. While in barrel, the wines were racked and lots from the same vineyard were blended. After the initial nine months in barrel, all lots read more...were racked, blended, and returned to the same barrels. The final blend was lightly fined using fresh egg whites to preserve and enhance both richness and texture. After an average of 21 months in barrel, the wine was lightly filtered at bottling in June 2007.
This is our 2nd vintage of designating this vineyard and we believe it will in time be recognized as one of the great vineyards in America. The 2005 is a true expression of the vintage and Freestone. While still in it's infancy upon release, the wine shows expressive qualities that speak to the unique character of this challenging grape. In time, the complex fruit profile will soften and will meld beautifully with the acid and tannins. This wine will show beautifully for many years to come. It will benefit greatly from decanting. Cheers!
Separate clones were harvested over the first 3 days of October in the fog-shrouded early morning. Ripeness levels were in the ideal range of 23 to 25 degrees Brix. The fruit expressed outstanding phenolic maturity as well as great acidity. The clusters were hand sorted and de-stemmed into small one-ton fermenters, with 30% left whole cluster. The wine underwent an extended cold soak for up to 11 days to achieve maximum extraction, resulting in complexity and balance. Gentle punch downs by hand were performed two to three times per day. The cold soak ended by a spontaneous wild yeast fermentation. The juice was then chilled and inoculated with Assmanhausen yeast to complete fermentation.
The 2005 vintage on the Extreme Sonoma Coast began with a very difficult spring that was both particularly wet and cold, even by the standards of this often hostile environment. Compounding this was a rare wind-driven rainstorm in late May that hit Freestone particularly hard and caused widespread shatter to the fragile clusters in their flowering stage. The result was extremely small clusters that by harvest were as much as 50% to 70% lighter than normal and resulted in yields of only one-half to one ton per acre. This 4 acre block yielded less than one ton for the entire vintage. Fortunately the remainder of the growing season was closer to the norm with mild daytime and cool evening temperatures and just enough late summer warmth to assist the grapes reach full maturity. The saving grace for this vintage was that the quality of the fruit was truly amazing with seldom seen complexity and concentration due to the high skin to volume ratio. Some of the best I have ever seen.
Oak: 50% new French oak (hide)
This is our 2nd vintage of designating this vineyard and we believe it will in time be recognized as one of the great vineyards in America. The 2005 is a true expression of the vintage and Freestone. While still in it's infancy upon release, the wine shows expressive qualities that speak to the unique character of this challenging grape. In time, the complex fruit profile will soften and will meld beautifully with the acid and tannins. This wine will show beautifully for many years to come. It will benefit greatly from decanting. Cheers!
Separate clones were harvested over the first 3 days of October in the fog-shrouded early morning. Ripeness levels were in the ideal range of 23 to 25 degrees Brix. The fruit expressed outstanding phenolic maturity as well as great acidity. The clusters were hand sorted and de-stemmed into small one-ton fermenters, with 30% left whole cluster. The wine underwent an extended cold soak for up to 11 days to achieve maximum extraction, resulting in complexity and balance. Gentle punch downs by hand were performed two to three times per day. The cold soak ended by a spontaneous wild yeast fermentation. The juice was then chilled and inoculated with Assmanhausen yeast to complete fermentation.
The 2005 vintage on the Extreme Sonoma Coast began with a very difficult spring that was both particularly wet and cold, even by the standards of this often hostile environment. Compounding this was a rare wind-driven rainstorm in late May that hit Freestone particularly hard and caused widespread shatter to the fragile clusters in their flowering stage. The result was extremely small clusters that by harvest were as much as 50% to 70% lighter than normal and resulted in yields of only one-half to one ton per acre. This 4 acre block yielded less than one ton for the entire vintage. Fortunately the remainder of the growing season was closer to the norm with mild daytime and cool evening temperatures and just enough late summer warmth to assist the grapes reach full maturity. The saving grace for this vintage was that the quality of the fruit was truly amazing with seldom seen complexity and concentration due to the high skin to volume ratio. Some of the best I have ever seen.
Oak: 50% new French oak (hide)
