The Frostwatch Kismet (76% Sauvignon Blanc, 24% Semillon) is a proprietary blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.  This White Bordeaux cuvee is based on “mis-plants” later identified as these two varieties which were accidently planted in our original Chardonnay block.  After several years of holding the fruit back and making wine in our garage, we came to the conclusion that the blend was something special.  We decided to devote more acreage to these mystery clones and make this cuvee on a commercial basis.  Our new plantings are coming into maturity and are producing three to four tons per acre in a warmer vintage.  While this tonnage pales in comparison to more production oriented vineyards, we believe that given the extreme quality of the fruit, the trade off is justified.  With consistent high marks from Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine, The Wine Advocate and Wine Enthusiast, this may be as close to a sure thing as you will ever find. Vibrant fruit (peach, apricot, fig) coupled with richness and complexity; this is an alternative white that’s easy to love.

This is our first 100% Semillon bottling !  (Most of our prior vintages have been blended with 15 -25% Sauvignon Blanc.)  Given that we are usually very enamored by the synergy of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, we were surprised that the 100% Semillon showed so well in our blend trials. Sometimes Semillon can be a little ponderous, but the 2016 Frostwatch Semillon has the right amount of vivacity and overall brightness to balance the weight and viscosity that the Semillon varietal possesses. We attribute that complexity to the mystery Semillon clone we received in 1997, as well as the unique climatology of the Frostwatch Vineyard. The long hang time (the Semillon is always the last grape picked each year) allows the variety to retain the balance that the variety can lose in warmer climes. Our Semillon shows a nice balance with notes of stone fruit and figs. As with the Kismet, the wine will pair well with seafood and poultry. Furthermore, the wine will compliment pastas with cream-based or butter-based sauces. We think this Semillon is a good wine simply to sip on its own or as an aperitif. 

The 2015 vintage was a very good one for Bennett Valley Chardonnay. The fermentations were lengthy and cool. The primary indigenous fermentation took one month and the indigenous malolactic fermentation took about eight months. During the lengthy malolactic fermentation the barrels were topped, stirred and topped weekly. The frequent oxygen protected stirring (the barrels are fully topped prior to stirring) promotes a strong sur lees aspect that gives complexity and richness to the mid-palate. After malolactic, the wines were topped and stirred monthly and bottled on May 4th, 2017 (after 19 months in French Oak).
The wine exhibits elements of ripe red apple as well as citrus notes of lemon and lime. The wine pairs well with a variety of foods but makes an excellent stand-alone beverage. Finally, the wine finishes with nuances of crème brulee and reserved oak notes.  The 2014 Frostwatch Chardonnay received 91 Points from the Wine Spectator and 90 Points from the Wine Enthusiast.  We expect this wine to do every bit as well as it’s predecessor.
 

The Ophira Reserve is a barrel selection of the best of the Frostwatch Chardonnay lots from outstanding vintages.  As always, our decision to make the Ophira, is a year-to-year one. Not surprisingly, we are more likely to make the Ophira in an outstanding vintage (2009, 2012, 2013, and 2014).   2015 certainly qualified as an outstanding vintage in Bennett Valley. A very temperate growing season coupled with lengthy, complex indigenous fermentations produced beautifully nuanced Chardonnays. The two barrels for our Ophira were selected based on multiple tastings and exhibited exceptional complexity as well as laser-like focused flavors. One barrel originated from the Platt Wente Block and the second barrel was from the Clone 4 Block. Both selected barrels were new but the oak was very well integrated and did not overpower the fruit characteristics of the vineyard.   The Ophira was bottled un-filtered after fining on May 4th, 2017 (after 19 months in French Oak).  Much like our regular Chardonnay, critics are consistently finding favor with our Ophira.  The 2014 Ophira received a Gold medal from the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Completion and 92 points from the Wine Enthusiast.  The 2013 bottling received 94 points from the Wine Enthusiast and 90 point scores from The Wine Advocate and Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine.

Frostwatch Merlot is quickly becoming a benchmark for New World Merlot production. Robert Parker of the Wine Advocate tasted the Sold Out 2013 vintage and scored it at 94 points. He tasted this wine in early 2017 and scored it 90+, (the plus indicating that it had the potential for improving with additional bottle age).  We believe it has done just that and recommend that fans of the 2013 give this one a try.  A solid vintage, 2014 produced a complex yet intensely flavored wine that tastes great now but will continue to improve in the bottle for several years. The wine is a dense, almost opaque purple/red color. The subtle tannins give the wine structure but do not overpower the wine’s black cherry and plum flavors. The finish is highlighted by a dusting of dried herbs and tea leaves—the hallmark of a good merlot.

 As with our previous Pinots, the 2014 is sourced from the Frostwatch Vineyard which is planted exclusively to the Swan Clone.  This clone is known for excellent fruit with small clusters and berries which produce wines with extreme concentration. The sole downside of these tiny berries and petite clusters is an extremely low case production per acre. (We continue to hope, as the blocks mature, future vintages will be larger)  The 2014 Pinot Noir is a lush and intense wine with powerfully flavored fruit including blackberry, dark cherries with notes of licorice, tobacco and black tea.  The mid-palate is full and silky, in part attributable to a monthly lees stirring regimen that spanned the 18months of barrel aging in French Oak.  Like our Merlot, this wine was tasted by Wine Advocate earlier this year and received a score of 90+ points. 

The Frostwatch Kismet (76% Sauvignon Blanc, 24% Semillon) is a proprietary blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.  This White Bordeaux cuvee is based on “mis-plants” later identified as these two varieties which were accidently planted in our original Chardonnay block.  After several years of holding the fruit back and making wine in our garage, we came to the conclusion that the blend was something special.  We decided to devote more acreage to these mystery clones and make this cuvee on a commercial basis.  Our new plantings are coming into maturity and are producing three to four tons per acre in a warmer vintage.  While this tonnage pales in comparison to more production oriented vineyards, we believe that given the extreme quality of the fruit, the trade off is justified.  With consistent high marks from Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine, The Wine Advocate and Wine Enthusiast, this may be as close to a sure thing as you will ever find. Vibrant fruit (peach, apricot, fig) coupled with richness and complexity; this is an alternative white that’s easy to love.

We produced a Semillon in 2013 that was labeled “Vice Versa” because the wine was the opposite of our Kismet in a number of ways. It was predominantly Semillon rather than Sauvignon Blanc, it was off dry rather than dry and it was barrel fermented rather than fermented in stainless steel. While everyone loved the Vice Versa, many of our customers urged us to try producing a dry, rather than off-dry, Semillon.  After experimenting with various blends, our final cuvee is 83% Semillon and 17% Sauvignon Blanc. The resulting wine is voluptuous with a silky smooth mouthfeel and a very nice acid balance. The wine exhibits traditional Semillon notes of fig, but also expresses honeydew melon aromatics and flavors.  Semillon is susceptible to botrytis cinerea which is known as the Noble Rot.   In general, we can’t resist anything that increases complexity in our wines.  We note the intense honey-like flavors typically associated with noble rot but also an additive complexing due to our use of indigenous fermentation. This Semillon is weightier than our Kismet and is perfectly suited as an aperitif wine.

This wine is a blend of our two Chardonnay blocks, the densely spaced Platt Wente Clone Block and our more traditionally spaced Clone 4 Block. The wine, as always, is barrel fermented utilizing both native indigenous yeasts and malolactic bacteria, which results in long, cool, and most importantly, complex multi-layered fermentations. This results in a chardonnay that has layers of flavors that evoke a number of different, and sequential, sensations on the palate. The initial impression is that of ripe red apple followed by citrus notes of lemon, lime and orange peel. On the mid-palate the wine exhibits a rich silky mouthfeel with just a nuance of well-integrated French oak.  Finally, the wine concludes with a lengthy finish that is supported by good, but not over-powering acidity.  The wine’s bright finish allows it to pair well with a variety of foods.  The two previous vintages of our Frostwatch vineyard bottling were well received scoring 92 and 93 points from Connoisseurs Guide to California Wines. The 2013 vintage also received 90 points from the Wine Enthusiast and Gold Medals from the 2016 San Francisco Chronicle Competition and the 2016 American Fine Wine Competition.  We are confident that this release will be as well received by the critics as well as our customers.

As always, our decision to make the Ophira, our reserve chardonnay, is a year-to-year one. Not surprisingly, we are more likely to make the Ophira in an outstanding vintage (2009, 2012, 2013, and 2014).  Each year we taste through each barrel to see if a particular barrel speaks to us, meaning that the barrel stands out above the others and deserves a reserve designation. Given that our fermentations utilize indigenous yeast, aside from oak considerations, each barrel is unique and different because the fermenting yeast and fermentation dynamics are different for each barrel. For the 2014 vintage, we chose three barrels of the Platt Wente clone that exhibited exceptional concentrations of fruit, complexity and texture. One barrel was new and two barrels were one year old. The 18 months of barrel aging and frequent lees stirring, coupled with the exceptional fruit from the Platt Wente Clone in 2014, give this wine the trademark laser-like focus, complexity and unctuous mouth feel expected from our Ophira reserve. The wine is drinking beautifully now but will get even better for several years at a minimum. The last vintage (2013) of the Ophira received excellent reviews (94 pts from the Wine Enthusiast, 91 Points from Connoisseurs Guide, 90 Points from The Wine Advocate and a Gold Medal at the Chronicle Wine Competition) but we feel that this vintage will be even better.

As with our previous Pinots, the 2013 is sourced from the Frostwatch Vineyard which is planted exclusively to the Swan Clone.  This clone is known for excellent fruit with small clusters and berries which produce wines with extreme concentration. The sole downside of these tiny berries and petite clusters is an extremely low case production per acre. (We continue to hope, as the blocks mature, future vintages will be larger!)  The evolution of this particular wine from the 2013 vintage has been a complex one. The wines prior to bottling were effusive and showed generous fruit and well-defined structure. Post-bottling they were more closed and not as generously proportioned. However, as they have aged in bottle, they are emerging from their slumber and starting to become what they promised in barrel. This vintage may require bit patience but we are confident Pinot lovers will be properly rewarded.