2019 Bistue Cellars Syrah, Yountville, Napa Valley, California (750ml)

RED CELLAR TRIO WINE CLUB SELECTION

Bistue Cellars was born out of passion for exploring different wine regions while creating remarkable wines. It began in 2014 as a fun side project by winemaker Carolina Bistué and her family, but soon grew into something more. After earning her Masters in Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis, Carolina Bistué worked at La Perla del Priorat in Spain and at Paul Hobbs’ Viña Cobos in Mendoza, Argentina as part of their winemaking teams. Carolina employs minimal-intervention winemaking techniques and subscribes to the belief that great wines begin in the vineyard, “We carefully select our vineyards based on the ideal location for each grape varietal and the style of wine that we want to achieve.”

Named after George Calvert Yount, who planted the first vineyard in the area around 1836, Yountville is located in the southern third of Napa Valley and was granted its own AVA status in 1999. Its cooler growing conditions result in elegant wines with strong tannins and great aging potential. The grapes, 100% Syrah (Certified Organic) were harvested before sunrise and carefully sorted in the field and again at the winery. The must underwent a cold soak with dry ice, for 5 days on the skins before fermentation in bins with multiple daily punch-downs, followed by 10 days of post-fermentation maceration. The resulting wine was aged for 12 months in 300L French oak barrels, 50% new, 50% second fill. Only 90 cases produced.

Deep garnet. Aromas of ripe blackberry, plum and a touch of cracked black pepper. The palate shows flavors of stewed dark fruit and white pepper; blackberry, olallieberry, dried blueberry and baking spices with a touch of black olive and cedar. The supple tannins are well integrated through the long, spiced finish.