Item Number: 7194 UPC: 0769434104219

Country: USA
Region: California Sub Region: Central Coast
Appellation/AVA: Central Coast
Vintage: 2013
Grape(s): 55% Grenache / 23.5% Mourvèdre / 10% Roussanne / 2.5% Carignane / 2% Grenache Blanc / 7% Cinsaut
Type: Wine - Rose
Bottle Size: 750ml Pack: 12
Closure: Screwcap
Case Production: 14,800
Alc by Vol(%): 12.5
Total Acidity: 5.5
pH: 3.33
Winemaking Notes: The Grenache for Bonny Doon's Vin Gris came from bespoke sections of the McDowell Valley, Mesa Verde, Rancho Solo and Ventana Vineyards, harvested at the appropriate maturity level for this elegant style of wine. About 15% of the wine is composed of traditional white Rhône varieties, which add a surprising richness and foundation. The practice of bâtonnage—the stirring or re-suspension of lees after fermentation— was also employed to give the wine a creaminess of texture.

Tasting Notes: This Vin Gris, a Provençal-styled pink, is a rather pale salmon color, owing to the fact that it is made from the lightest pressing of bespoke grapes, harvested at the appropriate maturity, i.e. not quite as ripe as those picked to produce a red wine. There is a lovely chalky/smoky gunpowder tea aspect to the nose, with a suggestion of bergamot, wild strawberry and maybe even a delicate trace of wintergreen. The fragrance is discreet and above all, elegant and draws one to the wine rather than mounts a frontal assault on one’s sensorium. On the palate, the wine has a sleek, salty, savory, mouth-watering aspect and a refreshing acidity. There is a wonderful persistent finish, making this one of the most food-friendly wines conceivable.

Winemaker's Notes: "This wine is perhaps the most emblematic of the great sea change that has occurred at Bonny Doon Vineyard since the great sell-off/draw-down of the Ginormous Doonamath. This wine is a true Vin Gris, which is to say, made from bespoke grapes (not a by-product of red wine production), harvested at the appropriate ripeness level for its style, and receiving but minimal skin contact. The essential principle here is that less is truly more. The wine does not overwhelm one with fruity-bombasticity; its charms are seductively subtle. Discreet nose of alpine strawberry, evolving into a refreshing mintiness with additional air and warming. On the palate, a beautiful natural crispness and a great sleek and savory texture, in virtue of the extended lees contact/bâtonage the wine received post-fermentation. Possibly the most elegant and complex Vin Gris de Cigare to date."