2005 Garden Creek Tesserae, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Assemblage, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County
Tasting Notes
A sumptuous, forward flattering wine. This fleshy earthy vintage is impressive. Deep floral notes of rose petal intermingled with bright red cherry, rays of red fruit. Oozing with blackberries, spices and subtle sweet oak intermixed with dark mocha, anise, and a hint of wet stone. Dark red; full body.
A rustic mouthfeel of layers and layers of deep dark fruit. An opulent voluptuous finish nearly conceals the bold tannins. Truly Garden Creek.
Vintage
2005 began with a wet growing season of moderate temperatures and weather patterns. Steady spring rains established the beginnings of ‘wet feet', where not enough oxygen is able to reach the roots due to oversaturated soil and overly vigorous vine growth. luckily, the vine growth course corrected once the weather dried out and warmer summer temperatures arrived. A real lack of massive heat spikes in August and September led to an extended autumn harvest and one of the longest hang times we can remember.
Anticipating a cooler growing season, we thinned the crop, ultimately resulting in below average yields, and very concentrated, mature fruit with desirable acid retention. Elegant smooth tannins, entwined with rich, earthy black fruit aromas are the result of our 2005 vintage.
Details
Our Other Wines
Garden Creek Chardonnay
Garden Creek Vineyard, Alexander Valley
Estate Clonal Selection
A Chardonnay blend of clones we refer to as our Grand Dame. Each vintage an individual expression of 6 to 9 of the eleven clones estate grown meticulously chosen in the vineyard. French oak barrel fermentation, Eleven-months sur lie aging. Three additional years bottle aging.
WärneliusMiller Pinot Noir
Golden Fleece Vineyard, Anderson Valley
Mendocino
A Pinot Noir showcasing a classic varietal defining the intimate variation of soils in the land influenced by the cool Pacific climate capturing alluring, expressive elegant wines with texture, structure and tension.