Sauvignon Blanc from a very special vineyard in the Yorkville Highlands of Mendocino County. Long infusion of whole clusters in direct pressed juice. Intensely exotic aromatics.
I normally tell this story or give this explanation verbally and in person where I can use my hands. I’m always talking with my hands and usually they are superfluous but in this situation I kinda need them to differentiate where things stand in relation to one another lol. But sometimes a winemaker has a wine that stands out from their others. Sometimes multiple winemakers have a wine that stands out from the rest of their lineup. Sometimes all of those standout wines come from the same vineyard. That to me is the mark of a special site. And so it is that I sought out the secrets behind some standout bottlings and found this vineyard. Only Bordeaux varieties are planted at this Yorkville Highlands site. This Sauvignon was planted in 1982 on shale terraces at 1100ft and has become maybe my favorite Sauvignon Blanc source. The vineyard was in the process of being sold to new owners, and I have the very fine skill of being just politely and politically annoying enough to get a bone thrown to me. The new owners decided to sell all of the fruit to one winery... and me.

In what is becoming a common Stagiaire practice, the fermentation is made up of 50% whole clusters with the balance being direct-pressed juice pumped on top and left to infuse for 3-4 weeks(honestly can’t remember). In barrels for a year. Ton’s of layers. Tropical fruit and candied pineapple, some bruised apple and oxidative notes, white floral aromatics and lime zest with a splash of cream and herbs. Delicious now but will reward a few more years as the tannins that are present unfurl and relax, releasing more and more of the wines wound up core. Very stable. I’d mess around with decanting if you wanted to get frisky.

‘STAGIAIRE’

The French word for apprentice and what the winemaker I worked for in Jura called me when other local vigneron asked who the hell the guy speaking really bad French was.
The name encapsulates humility, impermanence, and the pursuit of knowledge.
I work with vineyards that are organic at a minimum, actively seeking thoughtfull and regenerative practices instead of recipe farming. Most importantly I want to work with good people that are trying to farm with nature instead of against it. Starting in 2020 I am farming a few parcels of my own.
If we have good grapes, why add anything to them in the cellar?