We came to consensus on the blend for Avenius Red 2021 fairly quickly. At the first flight, the wine with the most finesse and elegance was the unanimous preference. We then worked around that blend for two days, adding and subtracting components. Invariably, the original blend was preferred in every blind tasting.
Read MoreBlending trials begin in January. After several weather delays we finally got started this week. Red wines from the previous vintage (2021) have now settled down and are beginning to show their personalities. We also have time. This is a slow process.
Read MoreNo snow. The grass is still green. No ice on the pond. No winter this year?
Read MoreThis week we systematically tasted samples from barrels of the 2021 vintage.
Read MoreA number of years ago, Steven Spurrier of “Judgment of Paris” fame visited Linden. He was particularly impressed with our 2009 Hardscrabble Red, which reminded him of Branaire-Ducru, a classified growth estate in St. Julian, Bordeaux.
Read MoreThis week wines from Linden’s red fermenters were drained into barrels. This was earlier than normal, but they were in a good place in their evolution and we did not want to over extract. We are getting a better sense of the wines. But they are still finishing up their malolactic fermentations which makes them a bit funky and gassy. That will soon blow off.
Read MoreLinden’s red wine fermentations have already completed. The yeast had an easy go of it this vintage as alcohols are on the low to moderate side (averaging around 13%).
Read MoreLinden’s 2021 vintage has presented us with red grapes that are “red fruit” ripe, have subtle tannins and moderate potential alcohol. This points us in a direction to make more feminine, poised wines rather than a big, structured, tannic Bordeaux style.
Read MoreYesterday we picked the last of our red grapes. Vintage 2021 required extreme patience as we waited for a weather miracle to ripen our stubborn reds. The past ten days gave us that miracle with warm, sunny days, low humidity, and cool nights.
Read MorePerfect weather has given us the window to harvest all our red grapes. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot are streaming onto the crush pad at an unprecedented rate. Style decisions are made as we taste the grapes during picking and sorting.
Read MoreWe are given a gift of ideal weather conditions. This week will be the most intense week of Vintage 2021. Almost all of our red grapes need to be harvested this week as they are fragile and cannot take another rain event. We start with Merlot on Wednesday.
Read MoreAfter Wednesday’s deluge we have had perfect ripening weather. The big concern centered around grape integrity. With a large hit of water the grapes will swell. Even worse they can crack. If this happens they lose their protective coating and start to fall apart. They cannot recover, even under ideal weather conditions.
Read MoreYesterday was a bummer. There is no way to sugarcoat a big rain during harvest.
Read MoreWe start this week picking Hardscrabble Chardonnay. Two blocks are ripe and we need to get them in the barn (walk-in cooler) before Wednesday’s forecasted rain. Two additional blocks will remain as they need a bit more time before they come into balance.
Read More