Mari's Memoirs: Crush Begins!

Vineyard Manager Ron Mansfield and I found that our snooze buttons were quickly taken away when we came to realize our fruit was not delayed in ripening, as was predicted by a late spring.  It seems the intensity of July’s heat brought the ripening up to the usual maturation time and we are now in full swing.  What this means.... We are picking at higher sugar levels to allow for tannins to mature in the grapes.  Flavors are also developing at higher sugar levels, and at DGV, we wait until the flavors are completely apparent in the cluster before picking.  It seems like every time I take a moment away from the vineyard, another cluster has ripened. 
This vintage has started strong.  The first week of harvest brought plentiful barrels of estate Viognier and we began to ferment our 2006 Coeur du Terroir Blanc.  The aromas from the Viognier are exactly like those of deep, ripe apricots.  Our Coeur du Terroir Blanc is a co-fermented blend of Viognier, Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Marsanne and Rolle (ask club member Alan Courtney how to pronounce that last varietal and he’ll give you a free French lesson).  All five varietals are picked from the small lot across the street where the ranch house resides, which explains why David often refers to it as “the house blend.”  This complex white blend holds up well to spicy food with its bright acid; I tried it with homemade spring rolls and a spicy chili sauce just the other night.  We are very excited about this 2006 vintage that is in the works.
Just a little note for those of you who miss our traditional French-styled Rose: It’s back!  We are picking Grenache, Mourvedre and Counoise in the next few weeks and are hoping to have the 2006 Estate Rose ready in time for Easter.