2023 Merlot

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2023 Merlot
2023 Merlot

 

Black Cherry • Flinty • Tension

Best enjoyed at 55° - 60°f
Suggested drink window: now - 2028 - 2034

 


From almost 70% estate fruit and the remaining 30% from both new and old Damiani growers, the 2023 Merlot encapsulates the vintage, vineyards, and various winemaking techniques used. Through tailored leaf removal, allowing just enough sunlight to hit the fruit while maintaining airflow, develops phenolics for softer, suppler tannins while maintaining varietal expression. And in the cellar, each vineyard’s uniqueness is displayed through small batch, indigenous fermentations.


 

Winemaking

• 100% Merlot     

• Vineyard locations: east side of Seneca Lake and west side of Cayuga Lake         

• Soils: Lansing and Lordstown channery silt loam

• Hand harvested from October 3-15th

• Indigenous yeast fermentation 

• Unfined & unfiltered

• Vegan

• Certified New York Sustainable Winegrowing

• Brix: 20.5°- 22.0° • pH: 3.57 • TA: 6.9 g/L • RS: 0.0% • ABV: 12.2% • Bottled: 8/12/2024

• Cases Produced: 190

2023 Tech Sheet

 


 

2023 Vintage Notes

As the harvest season approached, and all things pointed to 2023 being a lovely year. In the vineyards, our team worked tirelessly to ensure the cellar got to play with the best grapes possible come harvest time. Summer of 2023 was drastically different from the several previous seasons with a decent amount of rainfall, hot and humid days, but unusually cool nighttime temperatures. This means we were able to maintain a strict disease management protocol with timely shoot thinning and positioning, aggressive leaf thinning, and our hybrid organic/conventional spray program.

Many have asked about the frost event in late May and how we fared. In the days following the event, we were very nervous as we saw many small shoots go from green to black. After a few weeks, the vines started to push their secondary shoots and subsequent clusters, and we started to see life back in the hard-hit blocks. We feel very fortunate as we saw a fairly normal season as far as yields went, but we know some of our neighbors did not fare as well. These moments help reinforce the strength of the agricultural community and how we as consumers and neighbors can all help one another during challenging times by buying local, supporting small businesses, and always keeping a positive attitude.

 

 

 

Download Wine Notes
Vintage2023
VarietalMerlot
Varietal Composition100% Merlot
AppellationFinger Lakes
Vineyard94% east side of Seneca Lake, 6% west side of Cayuga Lake• 100% Merlot • Vineyard locations: east side of Seneca Lake and west side of Cayuga Lake • 44% Estate Caywood, 25% Damiani, 25% Caywood Vineyards, 6% Sunrise Hill • Soils: Lansing and Lordstown channery silt loam • Hand harvested from October 3-15th • Fruit chilled overnight before processing • Fruit hand sorted • Some lots saw 15% whole cluster & 20% saignée the day after processing • Indigenous yeast primary fermentation in bins • Fermentations 15-25 days long • Pressed at dryness • Indigenous malolactic fermentation in barrel • Aged for 12 months in 228-liter neutral French oak barrels; bimonthly bâtonnage for 5 months • Racked to tank for bottling in August • Unfined & unfiltered • Brix: 20.5°- 22.0° • pH: 3.57 • RS: 0.0% • TA: 6.9 g/L • ABV: 12.2% • Bottled: 8/12/2024 • Cases Produced: 190
Harvest Date10/15/2023
SugarBrix: 20.5° - 22.0°
Acid6.9 g/L
PH3.57
AgingAged for 12 months in 228L neutral French oak barrels with bâtonnage twice per month for 5 months.
FermentationNative ferment, 15-25 days
Residual Sugar0.0%
Alcohol12.20%
Wine StyleRed
Volume750 ml
Bottling Date08/12/2024
Cases Produced191
Country of OriginUNITED STATES
State of OriginNew York
Glyphosatenone
Artificially CarbonatedNo
Sparkling WineNo
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