2009 Crush- Gold at the end of the Rainbow

(Pictured Todd of San Diegiueto Cellars, myself, and Matt of Matthew Richards Wines)

Crush went very well this year without too many bumps in the road... As usual there was a lot of work but the wine has just recently been put in barrel and is tasting great.

This year I made:

2009 Dry Creek Chardonnay- I used 4 different yeasts including an indigenous fermentation. The wine was barrel fermented and it should be dynamic once blended together. The will be different in style than the 2008 as this is bigger and will have more richness.

2009 Dry Creek Valley Merlot- This could be the best year yet as the sugar levels were spot on and the flavors are incredible. This will be comparable to the 2004/2005 Merlots from our vineyard.

2009 Lake County Malbec- The fruit came from the Olof Vineyard in Lake County. Really intrigued by this varietal and think the market should be strong as there aren't a lot of domestic wineries producing a stand alone. This wine is quite low in alcohol but has tremendous fruit and body!

2009 Dry Creek Valley Petite Sirah- arrived and while not as big as the Gold medal winning 2007 but I think it will be a bit more in balance with the classic blackberry and spice flavors.

2009 Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon- This vintage will be great as it has the classic fruit found in our Cabs but I decided to extract more tannin during fermentation to give it a little more backbone.

2009 Dry Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Rose'- I have been playing around with Rose' the last couple of years with great results and should be releasing this one in a couple of months. It has lots of strawberry jam on the palate and a lot of minerality as well.