Winemaker Notes:
The 2018 Mid Summer Nights White is potentially the most
elegant iteration with many layers of green apple, honeysuckle, pear, apricot
and tropical notes of kiwi and guava. There
is a pleasant fresh vanilla bean aroma that pairs well with the lemon and honey
layers along with a hint of chalky limestone.
The mouthfeel is very round and full, with a lot of creamy tropical nuances
that lingers for a long time. Overall
the wine blankets the senses with creamy fruit which can at times appear as a
tropical meringue. I think this may be
the best Mid-Summer Nights White to date.
Vintage:
2018 started out with very cold temperatures in January and
continued throughout most of the winter.
The cold weather was followed by an unusually wet spring. Some rains coming when the vines were beginning
to flower, an important process in the grape development and a time when heavy
rains are not wanted. The summer was consistently
hot and humid with the humidity never seeming to abate. The fall started out with drier conditions allowing
for some good grape development and then towards the mid and later part of the
fall the rains returned. Overall a hot,
humid and wet vintage that Mother Nature throws at us occasionally to test the
fortitude of the growers and winemakers.
Blend
64% Traminette, 24% Petit Manseng, 12% Viognier
Harvest
The Traminette was harvested on 11 September 2018 at 20.3
Brix, .456g/L TA and 3.92 pH. The Petit
manseng was harvested on 9 September 2018 at 24.3 Brix, 0.618g/L TA and 3.61
pH. The Viognier was harvested on 12
September 2018 at 20.5 Brix, 0.585g/L TA and 3.88pH
Vineyard Source:
Wessex Hundred, Williamsburg, VA – Traminette
Lazy Days Vineyard, Amherst, VA – Petit Manseng
Grace Estates Vineyard, Crozet, VA - Viognier
Fermentation
The Traminette fermented for 17 days in stainless steel with
10C Be THIOL Yeast. The Petit manseng
fermented in stainless steel for 20 days with Rhone 4600 Yeast. The Viognier fermented in stainless steel for
14 days with Exotics Yeast.
Aging
The wine was aged in stainless Steel tanks and drums.
Bottling Date
30 April 2019 – 374 cases
Release Date
21 June 2019
Technical
Information
12.3% Alc.
3.62 pH
0.633g/L TA
0.50% RS
