Noble Tree Wickersham Ranch Merlot 2013
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The Estate Chalk-Hill-Russian River Vineyard is located in the Chalk Hill – Russian River Valley AVA, in the town of Windsor. Planted in the mid-1960s, the Vineyard is sited in a North-South orientation and is home to 17 acres of old-vine Noble Tree Chardonnay and five acres of old-vine Noble Tree Zinfandel. The vineyard is a classic valley floor site with alluvial soils exhibiting the dry, silty, loamy sand and gravel characteristics of an ancient riverbed and provides a perfect site to produce grapes for high-quality wines with varietal distinction.
Wickersham Ranch Vineyard is located in Northwest Sonoma county, wedged between the Rockpile AVA and the Sonoma Coast AVA. It is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot and Malbec at an elevation of 2,200 feet on a western facing slope. The Vineyard is one of the most remote sites in all of Sonoma County and offers the ideal microclimate to grow grapes for the production of Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon of the highest quality.
With generous fruit and supple tannins, Merlot is made in a range of styles from everyday-drinking to world-renowned and age-worthy. Merlot is the dominant variety in the wines from Bordeaux’s Right Bank regions of St. Emilion and Pomerol, where it is often blended with Cabernet Franc to spectacular result. Merlot also frequently shines on its own, particularly in California’s Napa Valley. Somm Secret—As much as Miles derided the variety in the 2004 film, Sideways, his prized 1961 Château Cheval Blanc is actually a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
Home to a diverse array of smaller AVAs with varied microclimates and soil types, Sonoma County has something for every wine lover. Physically twice as large as Napa Valley, the region only produces about half the amount of wine but boasts both tremendous quality and variety. With its laid-back atmosphere and down-to-earth attitude, the wineries of Sonoma are appreciated by wine tourists for their friendliness and approachability. The entire county intends to become a 100% sustainable winegrowing region by 2019.
Sonoma County wines are produced with carefully selected grape varieties to reflect the best attributes of their sites—Dry Creek Valley’s consistent sunshine is ideal for Zinfandel, while the warm Alexander Valley is responsible for rich, voluptuous red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are important throughout the county, most notably in the cooler AVAs of Russian River, Sonoma Coast and Carneros. Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Syrah have also found a firm footing here.