2018 Moss Vineyard Merlot

The 2018 Vintage:  The 2018 Merlot vineyard is located in the southern most part of Napa County at the Moss property. This single vineyard Merlot is produced in the Bordeaux style with 100% Merlot.

Winemaking:  The grapes were harvested in October at 26 degree Brix and hand picked into ½ ton bins, gently destemmed, cold soaked at 48 degrees for 5 days to help with color and fresh fruit and fermented into open top bins. The grapes were hand punched down three times a day until dry. The wine was pressed to barrel for malolactic fermentation, racked off and put into 100% new French barrels for 28 months to ensure their complex flavors. Each barrel was hand racked four times before it was bottled.

Tasting notes:  This limited production Merlot has an enticing nose that leads to a smooth mouthful that’s packed with a mix of nice layered flavors like blackberry, blueberry, dark chocolate and bright plum. This enjoyable full bodied wine has nice structure and is balanced with soft tannins that lead to an amazing long finish that will have you coming back for more.