Botrytis cinerea
is a fungus that affects plant species. It
is rare and highly prized when making a “late harvest” wine; for this reason Botrytis cinerea is often referred to as
the “noble rot”. Botrytis cinerea is responsible for the great dessert wines of the
world; Sauternes of France, Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese of Germany,
and the Tokaji in Hungary. Chateau d’Yquem is the most famous chateau in
Sauternes and also holds the record for the most expensive wine bought in the
world (a single bottle of the 1811 sold for $117k at an auction in 2011).
Ideal conditions are needed for
the development of this rot. Dampness or
humidity in the morning, coupled with warmth later in the day leaves the fruit
without much moisture. The grapes become
shriveled, dehydrated and concentrated with new characteristics; namely honey,
tropical fruits, and roasted nuts. Due
to the dry Mediterranean climate in Paso Robles, we rarely experience the
conditions for Botrytis cinerea to
develop; however, in 2010 we were fortunate to have the right conditions
present for its growth on our Roussanne vines.
When the Roussanne was harvested at Derby Vineyard, the
desire was to pick only the ripest fruit infected with the rot. This was a labor intensive process that
required multiple passes in the vineyard.
After picking and sorting the grapes in the vineyard, the fruit was taken
to the winery where it was crushed gently with our feet. The reason we did this was to release some of
the juice before we put it into the bladder press where it would be allowed to
sit overnight to extract some of those concentrated flavors and aromas. The next morning it was whole cluster pressed
to tank where it settled overnight. The
juice was then racked into French oak barrels (50% new) where fermentation was
carried out slowly for two months until it reached 12% alcohol; at which time
the yeast activity naturally stopped, leaving a residual sugar of 25%. We aged
the wine on the yeast lees (sur lie) and gently hand-stirred each barrel once a
month over a 6 month period. The wine
was aged a total of 48 months in barrel (36 months is the average for Chateau
d’Yquem). The decision to use 50% new
oak, age and stir on lees, and increase the time in barrel resulted in a wine
with a creamy texture, great complexity, and incredible depth.
Harvest:
December 2
42.8 brix
Wine at bottling:
8.4g/l ta
25% residual sugar
12.1% alc
Nose: dried apricots,
honeyed white peach, pineapple marmalade, vanilla custard, honeysuckle
Palate: luscious, ripe pear, lemon curd, tropical
fruits drenched in honey, grilled nuts
Aging: When first bottled, the wine shows dark yellow and
golden hues. With aging, the color
changes and begins to darken. It can
resemble caramel or even the color of coffee.
Something else to consider is that flavors will evolve from honey and
tropical fruit to caramel, burnt toast, spice, and crème brulee.
