Matanzas Creek Journey Merlot 1999

From the beginning, the owners, winemakers, growers and staff of Matanzas Creek Winery were aware that they were devoted to a seemingly impossible quest: to make wines that would be counted among the world's finest. This quest led them to winemaking methodology driven by research, experimentation and constant refinement. The true origins of the Journey program lie in that method. The wine was christened "Journey" as an ode to the process of discovery that has defined Matanzas Creek Winery for over twenty years. Tasting through the barrels of each new vintage, the winemaking team seeks the few that display the density of fruit that has become the hallmark of the winery's flagship bottling. Once selected, the blend is further refined to craft a wine with firm structure and great depth of fruit and complexity of nuance. This rigorous selection has always resulted in the declassification of some lots, in fact some years yield no Journey wine. This should not be considered an indictment of the vintage as a whole, but rather as a testament to the special character of Journey wines and their ultimate rarity.