Dedicated to Nancy Cook, retiring after 30 years with Domaine Saint George.
Harvesting machine-picked Sauvignon Blanc grapes on August 12th? Not a typo, just an unusual year here in the wine country of Healdsburg, Sonoma County. I guess that's the price we pay for a warm winter without frost - when you can pick veggies out of the garden in December and oranges in February. The vines on our estate hillside lost their leaves by Christmas and we were out pruning by the end of the month. The warm weather and lack of rain caused the grapes to bud out as early as the end of February. By bloom in April and May, we were two to three weeks ahead of last year's growth cycle. After some wind and fog, which did not help at all during the important bloom stage, we were out counting clusters to determine crop size and how many new barrels we needed to order for the upcoming harvest. Believe me, it all ties together in the end result of winemaking. The cluster count was down in the Cabernet, but average in the Merlot and Zinfandel. On a hillside vineyard, this translates
into a smaller crop with intense fruit and flavors. Things were starting to look up at an early date. Because of late spring rains, we did not start the drip irrigation until June when we gave the vines their weekly 12 to 15 gallons of water. Fog and heat spikes were the normal weather pattern during the summer ripening stage. For a week at a time, you needed a light jacket when the sun didn't show until noon. The following week, we would be leaf pulling in 100+ temperatures. Hot days, below average crop, early virasion. By mid-July, it was time to go fishing in Mexico. There was plenty of time to do those last minute harvest orders and get out all that equipment that you can't live without for two months out of the year. It was a reality check to come back on August 4th and find those voice messages from anxious growers who wanting you to come "out to the vineyard" and check the sugars. It was really going to be an early year. The last time I saw a season like this in 1985 which
turned out to be an exceptional vintage. We might even finish by the end of September.a month and a half harvest!!
On the first day of September we hand picked our estate Merlot at 23.8 brix. This was our fourth harvest from this newly planted block above the winery. Fermented at 85F using a Pasteur Red yeast, it went dry in six days. Loads of fruit, with a classical Merlot nose, and a deep garnet hue..we were not disappointed with our first '04 wine. The estate Cabernet came off at 24.8 brix on the 15th of September. The crop was light in comparison to last year, but the complexity and color were exceptional for a young wine. The star of our estate is a small block of Cabernet planted far above the winery facing west toward the Russian River. We call it the "Rocky Block" Cab, a name that was earned due to the vast amount of native fieldstone that had to be removed prior to planting. The soil (what little there is) supports an unusual Cab that is full of chocolate, cherry, and mint in the nose. This is the third harvest from these vines and all the wines are aging in American oak barrels
in our cellar. All three vintages show a huge tannin backbone, inky black hues, and a aroma unlike any one of our four Cabs that we produce.
The last grapes we picked were a "Dry Creek Old Clone" Zinfandel from a small block in front of the winery. At 26.4 brix we had a little trouble getting the must to go dry with all that sugar. It took about three weeks to finish after being pressed out at 1 brix. It's now going through malolatic fermentation, then into American oak barrels for aging. The crush was over before the end of September.
All three of our estate wines are showing remarkable flavor and aroma profiles at an early age (two months). After settling of the lees, the wines should be ready to go into the barrels before Christmas. It has been a remarkable and unpredictable year in many ways, but there are no set rules in winemaking. This year we were given the opportunity to turn an unusual growing season into wines of intense character that will age out into a vintage to remember. In my mind, I dedicate this harvest to our cellar records keeper, Nancy Cook, who will be retiring from the winery after thirty years. She kept track of all the grapes and wines as well as daily work orders that pass through her watchful scrutiny. You can never wholly detach yourself from the wine industry, but like a great wine, I know that Nancy will move on to the next stage of change and development.
Robert "Bob" L. Fredson
Winemaker
Domaine Saint George Winery
PDF of Harvest Letter 2004 (5.2MB)
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