Highlights
WINEMAKER MIRO TCHOLAKOV’S TASTING NOTES: The wines from Coyote Ridge vineyard are very consistent in regards to their unique terroir-driven aromas. The decomposed rock soils reduce the natural Cabernet Sauvignon vigor, resulting in small berry size and lower yields. This makes concentrated wine with well-expressed minerality and dark stone fruit aromas. There is a certain velvety texture in the mouthfeel. The nose is complex, with layers of dark cherry, plums, and wild blackberries. The finish is rich, focused, and fruit-dominated. The new barrels bring in aromas of maple, cocoa-mocha, and a hint of vanilla. Enjoy now or age for another 5-7 years.
THE VINEYARD: These grapes are from Coyote Ridge Vineyard, situated in the middle of Dry Creek Valley. For almost 20 years I have been making Petite Sirah for Miro Cellars from this unique vineyard, but the Cabernet Sauvignon has been bottled and sold exclusively by its owners until the 2019 vintage. This is truly an Old Vine Cabernet—it was planted in the 1940s, dry-farmed on decomposed rocks and brick-red Manzanita-type soils.
THE VINTAGE: The 2019 season had an interesting mix of conditions, to say the least! We had a lot of rain in March and in May, fires in October with evacuations and power outages—other than that the quality was spectacular! The grapes were harvested before the fires occurred, therefore: no smoke taint. Otherwise, the growing season was relatively mild and long without any heat waves or other surprises. The crop yields were lower than in 2018, and the quality is high.
WINEMAKING: The grapes were harvested by hand on October 25th, 2019. After hand-sorting, the grapes were destemmed (but not crushed) for 100% whole-berry fermentation. After a few days of cold soak, the wine was fermented by indigenous (“native”) yeast at a relatively low temperature. The extended maceration lasted 40 days on the skins. The wine was aged in 40% new oak barrels (French Oak) with the remainder being neutral oak barrels.
