Topped off, sulphited…and just a single grape of color for ’11
I mixed up a new batch of SO2, and sulphited the barrels to 20 ppm.
I also topped them off…took one bottle of the ’09.
The ’10 is definitely more tannic than the ’09. Hopefully not too much. The ’10 should age well. It has the tannins and the acid. This year we will do the cold soak again, but maybe press off sweet. That should keep the tannins down a little, and maybe make them a little smoother. The big decision is whether to bleed off some juice off the skins to get more color, mouth feel.
I walked the vineyard. The pinot up top (115 clone) is definitely into veraison. Probably 75% turned. The pinot in the back was maybe at 10% color. I saw one grape with color on the syrah, and none on the zin. It is going to be a late harvest again. If I were a praying man, I would be praying for a dry fall.