THE C.R. SANDIDGE WINES
2022 Merlot
Due to the very cool weather from March through early – June, the overall growing season leading up to harvest was borderline disastrous. Utilizing excellent canopy management and dropping 25% of the grape clusters helped mitigate some of that growth delay caused by the cool weather. It was going to take unusually dry – warm weather through the end of October to allow winemakers the opportunity to spread out the harvest and gain some additional ripeness. Mercifully, that happened as fully ripened grapes were being picked through the 6th – 7th of November without rainfall. Ultimately, grapes were picked between 14 and 20 days later than what we would normally expect.
The harvest for this fine red wine blend came from two Wahluke Slope AVA and Rocky Reach AVA vineyard sites. Small berries packed with dark purple color, black fruit and red berry flavors and aromas provided the generous backbone of this fine wine. The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes were harvested from the “James” vineyard while the Merlot was grown at it’s sister site, the renowned “Stone Tree” vineyard. The Malbec was harvested from the Rocky Reach AVA vineyard known as AFK.
- Harvest: All fruit was hand-picked, sorted and destemmed – crushed into one ton fermentation bins.
- Fermentation: A yeast developed in northern France was utilized for the primary fermentation. The various musts were fermented for 9 to 13 days on the skins prior to pressing.
- Grape must was “punched down” thoroughly twice each day while skins were in contact with the fermenting juice.
- Malo-lactic conversion: Malo – lactic conversion was fully completed while the wine was in barrels utilizing the native bacteria.
- All wines were aged for 17 months in French oak barrels. Sixty percent of the barrels were new oak. The balance was aged in one to three use barrels. This was done to the preserve a large fruit component for the final blend. The French oak we sourced for new oak was “Center of France”.
- Filtration Level: Very tight at bottling.
The quality of Stone Tree and James vineyard fruit shines once again. Our Merlot is an elegant wine yet possesses enough body to be classified medium – plus to full. Flavors and aromas are of sweet vanilla bean – coffee bean barrel notes plus a healthy dose of ripe black cherries, a slight red raspberry note plus some red and black currants. A slight hint of rose petals enters the picture thereby completing the flavor and aroma profile. The acidity is moderate while the tannins are fine and firm. This is an exceptional food wine. Some recommended food pairings would be with grilled loin of lamb chops seasoned with the herbs of Provence or… grilled line caught salmon. Don’t eat meat, a richly seasoned – cheesy eggplant Parmesan will do just fine. Our family thanks you for your friendship and support. Enjoy!!
Wine Specs
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Alcohol Percentage: | 14.4% |
| pH: | 3.63 |
| Acidity: | 5.4g/liter |
| Residual Sugar: | 1g/liter |
| AVA: |
Columbia Valley |
Non-Member Pricing
Bottle Price: $35.00
Case Discount: 15%
Club Member Pricing
Bottle Price: $28.00
Case Discount: 30%