1997Viognier

Cline Cellars
1997Viognier
Los Carneros

Technical Notes
1997 Viognier
Los Carneros
HARVEST DATE: Aug. 8 Sept. 17
BRIX AT HARVEST: 24.9_
TOTAL ACIDITY: 0.70g/100ml
FINAL pH: 3.55
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 3.55
ALCOHOL: 14.0%
SUGGESTED RETAIL: $20

VINTAGES NOTES
The 1997 growing season could be described as one of the largest on record. Fortunately, a very warm summer tempered, in the Los Carneros district, by strong winds and a maritime cooling influence enabled this large crop to mature fully. Due to an extremely dry season, the 1997 vintage was one where judicious use of irrigation was needed. The last appreciable rain was in early January. Harvest at the Carneros ranch came relatively early, producing intense colors and powerfully flavored fruit in the reds with bright acid structures in the whites.

VINEYARDS
One of the rarest and most treasured white varietals of the northern Rhone Valley, Viognier is the sole grape used to fashion the rich, famous wines of Condrieu and Chateau Grillet. Our Los Carneros vineyards, planted in shallow clay and loam soils on the flats in front of our winery, seem ideally suited to producing Viognier rich in the exotic floral and tropical aromas that make the grape so unique. Howling afternoon winds that tear through the region and characterize the far southern end of the Los Carneros district mitigate the blistering summer heat and force our vines to struggle. The unique climactic and soil conditions reduce yields and concentrate flavors in the small, tight clusters of grapes. A small amount of Viognier from tiny plantings in Contra Costa County is blended with our Los Carneros fruit. These vines, planted on their own roots in Contra Costa's sandy soils, produce a wine with slightly more body, lending our Viognier an extra dimension of richness.

FERMENTATION AND AGING
In the winery, we have found that our Viognier responds particularly well to partial barrel fermentation. In 1997, the grapes were 100% whole-cluster pressed to limit extraction of phenolics. The resulting juice underwent a pre-fermentation oxidization to further reduce astringent compounds in the wine and was cold-settled overnight. After racking the juice off its sediment, we inoculated our Viognier with selected yeast strains from the Rhone Valley of France and cold-fermented it in stainless steel. As the fermenting must reached approximately 12_ to 16_ brix we transferred it to a complement of new 500 litre American oak Puncheons and used 225 litre French oak barrels to finish slowly to dryness. Malolactic fermentation in this wine was blocked to accentuate its fresh acidity. Barrel-aged 5 months on its yeast lees, our Viognier was stirred bi-weekly initially and monthly thereafter. To preserve as much freshness, fruit and varietal character as possible, the finished wine was bottled in early May after a light filtration.

WINEMAKER'S COMMENTS
Viognier is quickly becoming a popular grape among California's more progressive winemakers. At the winery we have found the grape's exotic spice, floral and tropical nuances particularly exciting and do all that we can to accentuate this aspect of variety. Consciously avoiding the tendency in California to make this varietal in the style of Chardonnay, we have vinified our 1997 Los Carneros Viognier more like the best northern Rhone examples. Meanwhile, modern winemaking techniques and partial stainless steel fermentation give our wine more characteristic fruit appeal than those of France. Loaded with exotic melon, flower and spicy notes, I feel this Viognier makes an ideal aperitif as well as a beautiful accompaniment to hedonistic seafood dishes, such as lobster in a ginger-butter sauce.

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