Napa Valley

Medium

Agglomerated Cork

White

Whole-cluster pressed in a Crémant style, this Sauvignon Blanc is closely monitored by Senior Director of Winemaking Ryan Knoth, who watches for pH shifts during pressing—seeking flavour and acidity over extreme phenolic extraction or overly low pH. The wine is fermented for 10 months in a mix of neutral and 30% new French oak, including elongated cigare barrels. Batonnage is employed to build texture, but carefully so as not to release the aromatics. There’s 12% Musqué clone in the blend, which contributes a floral lift. Aromatically, the wine is generous and savoury—nuanced with crushed Marcona almonds, integrated cedarwood, citrus peel, orchard fruit, apricot, and a saline edge. Medium-bodied on the palate, it offers great richness and purity of fruit, threaded through with fabulous saline-acid tension that drives the freshness and long, elegant finish. A final touch of wild fennel or tarragon, along with pressed wildflowers, lends complexity. This is a beautifully enticing wine—expressive now, and easily capable of rewarding cellaring for 10 to 15 years.

Sauvignon Blanc

Joseph Phelps, Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, St Helena, California, USA, 2023

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Whole-cluster pressed in a Crémant style, this Sauvignon Blanc is closely monitored by Senior Director of Winemaking Ryan Knoth,

Joseph Phelps, Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, St Helena, California, USA 2023

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