2002 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 15.2%
Grape Varieties 96% Syrah; 2% Grenache; 2% Viognier
Region California
Harvest Dates 24 Sep 2002: Shadow Canyon Syrah; 2002-09-27 and 2002-10-08: Stolpman Syrah; 2002-10-09 and 2002-10-12: White Hawk Syrah; 2002-10-11: Alban Grenache and Viognier; 2002-10-23 and 2002-10-29: Alban Syrah; 2002-11-05 and 2002-11-06: Bien Nacido Syrah
Sites 29% Alban Vineyard; 27% Bien Nacido Vineyard; 21% Stolpman Vineyard; 15% Shadow Canyon Vineyard; 8% White Hawk Vineyard
Fermentation Vessels Small open-top fermenters
Oak Details 87% First Fill New Oak
First Fill New Oak87%
Oak Types French oak; American oak
Unfiltered Yes
Fining Agents Egg white; 1.5 egg whites per barrel on approximately 50% of the lots, with no fining on the remaining lots
Production Details Harvest lots ranged from 23.0 to 27.4 °Brix and pH 3.18 to 3.63; these are harvest measurements, not finished-wine analyses. Fermentation used manual punch-downs, with 11–16 days on skins depending on the lot. Excluding bottling, the Alban Grenache lot was racked once, Alban Syrah three times, and the Stolpman, White Hawk, Bien Nacido and Shadow Canyon Syrah lots twice each. The barrel program comprised 87% new oak—14% of that new-oak component American and the remainder French—and 13% used barrels one to three years old. The source reports acidity of 6.0 g/L without specifying its analytical basis. Bottling was by gravity on June 22, with the year unstated, after approximately 19 months in barrel. Production comprised 1,020 cases, 30 cases of magnums and 104 double magnums; release date was April 1, 2005.
Tasting Notes Crème de cassis, toast, blackberries, licorice, barbecue spice and exotic floral scents; extremely full-bodied, intense, pure and very long
Critics Ratings 100
Producer Information
Website
Address
PO Box 1048, Oak View, CA 93022, USA
Phone
+1 805-649-8901
Email
Owner
Elaine &
Manfred Krankl
Manfred Krankl
Cellarmaster
Manfred Krankl