Non Vintage Doesn’t Mean Lesser Quality

What it means is the entire cellar of aging wines was open to the winemaker for a master blending exercise.

 Non-Vintage Vin Enchanté, Applegate Valley, Southern Oregon

Each barrel in a cellar puts its own stamp on a wine.  Large wineries aren’t able to take advantage of a single barrel’s unique flavors and aromas since they must combine them into larger batches for bottling.  Homogeneity is achieved but certain individuality is lost.  That isn’t the case with this limited production wine.  This Vin Enchanté is made by our winemaker tasting and then selecting individual barrels for the attributes he saw possible in the combination.  In short, a micro-combination interpreted at the hand of the winemaker.

Earlier versions of this wine have sold out.  This is the latest in the line, bottled in January of 2018.

It’s inky black in color and fuller bodied than its earlier cousins but like them you’ll find it loaded with rich dark character. In taste and aroma it highlights that portion of the more aged Merlot used in the blend but underlying that is the youthful exuberance, fruit and backbone passed to it by its younger Cabernet Franc components.  It’s a prime example of what purposeful “barrel selected” blending can achieve.

Those who enjoy the art of wines will find this winemaker’s sketch fun and enlightening but like a Da Vinci sketch of old it promises to develop a serious following.

Tasting Note – April 4, 2018

Varietals:
2011 Merlot 60%, 2015 Cabernet Franc 40%

Skin Contact in Fermenter:
Varies

Barrel Aging:
Varies.

Pair with: This is an aromatic wine with distinctive berry fruit and earthy complexity.  It’s suitable to pair with highly flavored foods.  Those might include dishes of roasted meats, wild game, BBQ ribs, Gouda Burgers, Honey Glazed Chicken or other similarly spiced or cheesy dishes.