Variety: Carignan

Vineyard: Ricetti

AVA: Redwood Valley, CA

Farming: Organic, Dry Farmed

Harvest Date: 30 September 2024

Bottling Date: 20 March 2025

Alc: 12%

Cases: 120

The fall Carignan from Ricetti is the same fruit as the ‘enhorabuena’ spring rosé, but picked a few weeks later for more color, more tannin and a higher final alcohol.  In 2024, I was able to hang the Carignan for this wine a full 3 weeks beyond the Carignan for rosé.  Unlike in 2023, in which the cool vintage meant most of the Carignan stalled out around 20 brix, the warm 2024 weather meant that by late September, the Carignan had ripened to just over 23 brix – an excellent year in which to make a rich, warm Carignan.

At the winery, the Carignan was fully foot crushed (to lean into its weight and richness), and placed into tank 100% whole cluster.  It spent 10 days steadily fermenting on skins, after which it was pressed to tank to finish fermentation.  Once dry, the Carignan was barreled down to neutral oak barriques and one neutral oak puncheon, to go through malolactic fermentation and age over the winter.

In late March, Carignan was racked to tank for bottling.

Indigenous yeast fermentation. 25 ppm SO2 at bottling, no other additions, unfined and unfiltered.