Melville Estate Sta. Rita Hills Syrah 2013

Melville is a family-owned, 100% estate, organic vineyard and winery in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA of Santa Barbara County.

They produce Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah, and a small amount of Grenache. All their wines, from the flagship Estate

Pinot Noir to the Small Lot Collection Donna's Block Syrah, are hand-grown and hand-made 100 cases at a time.

Their founder Ron Melville carefully selected the location of the estate for its proximity to the Pacific Ocean as well as

the soil composition - predominantly sandy loam and diatomaceous earth with sections of clay. You can be too close

to the ocean and struggle with getting fruit ripe, and you can also be further away and struggle with temperatures that

are too hot...Melville is in the sweet spot.

The Melville's have been practicing responsible farming for over three decades, and since 1997 in the Sta. Rita Hills

when brothers Chad and Brent Melville planted the estate vineyards (before the AVA was formally established). They

take great pride in their commitment to "winegrowing"…working in harmony with Mother Nature to nurture their land

through organic and sustainable farming practices to ensure that all of the most crucial work is done in the vineyard.

The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is incredibly unique for a few reasons:

• It lies within a transverse mountain range, meaning that the mountains on either side of the valley are running

east-to-west from the ocean rather than north-to south. This is the only transverse mountain range in North

America.

• It has the longest growing season in North America. The growing season starts early (bud bread in late

February) and ends relatively late (Melville is often harvesting into late November) because they have a mild winter

and a cold, sunny summer. This environment of consistent "cold sunshine" allows for a long, slow ripening

and wines that showcase high acidity with ripe aromas/flavors.

Stylistically, They choose to only use neutral wood. With the vines being 25+ years old, they have reached a maturity

that Melville is proud of. The vines are creating the best fruit ever and they want their customers taste the flavors of Sta.

Rita Hills and Mother Nature in their purest form.

Stem inclusion during fermentation has been a key to Melville wines. They create aromatic lift, add tannins, and can

bring another dimension of flavor to the palate, including savoriness and spiciness. When using stems, it is important

to ensure they are fully ripe to avoid green, unpleasant, vegetal flavors. Fortunately, the Sta. Rita Hills' long growing

season allows for fully ripened stems.