Tasting Time!

It was such a nice surprise yesterday when Karen mentioned the Viognier barrels were down from their stacks – time to taste! What a great start to the week.

The last time I tasted the wine was in January right as we were barreling down the Viognier, and in the mean time we have stirred the barrels a few times. We do this because sediment settles to the bottom of the barrels and if it is left on the bottom too long the sediment can break down and cause an off odor in the wine. In addition, stirring coats the inside of the barrels, better integrating the oak flavors in the wine. As the yeast and sediment are stirred into the wine, they add a nice roundness and creaminess. And this comes through when tasting the wine!

The first Viognier barrel we tasted was from a 1 year old French Oak barrel. The aroma and taste was white peaches, similar to the last time we tasted, but the peach is outdoing the pear. The second barrel we tasted from was a new American Oak barrel and it was slightly different. This barrel carried a light spice with more of a pineapple taste. What they both had in common was the viscosity was not overbearing and the fruit came through, and more importantly, the oak was well integrated. It did not taste like biting into an oak tree!

The final taste was a 50/50 blend from both barrels and what a great wine! It’s such a nice balance between the bright tropical fruit and peach flavors, the light spice from barrels, and creaminess. A few more months in barrel and we’ll be ready for bottling!