2016 Malbec
$45.00
Medium garnet colored, the nose on this wine reveals an enticing array of black raspberry, plum, earth and tamari notes. The palate is layered and savory, with sweet, supple tannins framing an elegant, deep, well balanced Malbec crafted for immediate enjoyment and structured enough to ensure mid term ageability.
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2016Elegant & Structured
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AVAMendocino County
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Grape VarietyMalbec
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ABV14.5%
Planted in 1999 and farmed organically from the outset, Skid Row Vineyard is the westernmost block on the Saracina Ranch, marked by black clay and gravelly soils at the base of the foothills. The plant material is the original Bordeaux clone 4. It is significant not for what it produces, but for what it doesn’t. It is the lowest-yielding commercial Malbec clone available, and on our property typical yields are one and a half tons per acre. It produces concentrated fruit without the need to pick at ultra-high sugars.
The vineyard was named “Skid Row” for the tracks carved into the surrounding hillsides in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by donkeys dragging logs down to the vineyard site, where they were collected to fire the furnaces for hop barns in the course of making beer.
The harvest of 2016 was a winemaker’s dream, following replenishing, drought-ending rains and a long and even growing season. The grapes were harvested by hand, destemmed, and gently fed into the fermenter with 50% whole berries. Native yeast fermentation began in earnest eight days later and was managed with two aerative pumpovers per day until dryness. The wine was drained directly into Taransaud barrels, 15% of which were new. Native malolactic fermentation was complete by early January. The wine rested on light lees for 19 months and was bottled on May 23, 2018.
Pair this wine year-round with a grilled peppery soy balsamic marinated steak and grilled portabella mushrooms.
