PHOENIX VINEYARDS
1999 Napa Valley Sangiovese
Blood of Jupiter
Winemaker's Notes:
Varietal %s: 89% Sangiovese, 11% Cabernet Franc
Date of Harvest: Oct 8th, Oct 30th and Nov 16thBrix at Harvest: 23.0-24.3 B
Length of Ferment: 7-9 days with up to 21 days total skin contact time
End Alcohol: 13.9%
Tune in Oak: 8 months in 100% French Oak barrels
Bottling Date: August 6th, 2000 (No fining or filtration)430 cases produced
Each harvest has its own personality. In 1999 it was the huny up and wait syndrome. The spring weather patterns, alternating between warm and cool, led to a very similar time of bloom across our entire vineyard. On the estate, all of the grapes (red and white) were harvested in 9 days. Thats seven different varietals in eight different blocks, all ripe at once. In past years there has been as much as two months between the first and last grapes picked on the estate. By contrast, some of the small lots of grapes we purchased from other vineyards, in the Atlas Peak and Rutherford areas of the Napa Valley, did not achieve full maturity until a few weeks later. During the last three weeks of October we only crushed one lot of grapes. In any other year we would have been working like mad for the whole month.
The good weather during the 1999 growing season led to overall high quality, clean fruit. As in previous vintages we crushed our Sangiovese into open-top fermenters. We chose to remove all of the stems before fermentation in this year because the skins were showing more than enough structure and tannin development on their own. This is another illustration that what brings success in one vintage wont necessarily work in all of them. During the fermentation we used the old method of manually punching-down the cap of skins to extract greater color and character without drawing out excessively bitter tannins. The period of skin contact in the fermenters was moderate; the vintage had a good level of extract by the third week and didnt need further managing. The secondary, or malolactic, fermentation was finished in barrel to give a greater roundness and balance to the wine. In addition, we chose a relatively short barrel aging period to accent the fruit of the wine. The wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered to preserve maximum character for the bottle.
This is the second vintage that Cabernet Franc has played such an important role in blending for the Blood of Jupiter. It lends a greater complexity to the aroma of the wine and has added some length to the finish. The color is a deep red with a slight magenta rim. Aromas of cherry preserves, cranberry and briar show in the nose along with sage and cedar notes. There is also a hint of pepper late in the palate. This wine can be enjoyed now or over the next several years. As a young wine it will probably benefit from being decanted 30 minutes before serving. It would pair well with a wide range of foods including beef, lamb and pork as well as pasta dishes.
