Northstar - Columbia Valley Merlot 2005

Tasting Notes	Buy Wine Club Members - Buy Wine
This rich wine is concentrated and yet elegant, with aromas of cherry, plum, raspberry, and blackberry, finishing off with flavors of toasted oak, vanilla, coconut, mint, and toffee. Enjoy and celebrate!
Merlot Vintage
Warm summer months and a cool autumn yielded a record harvest for 2005. The growing season began with moderate winter temperatures, followed by a long and warm summer which allowed prolonged hang-time and resulted in fruit with deep, concentrated flavors and intense color.
Vineyards
Diversity of vineyards and sub-appellations within the Columbia Valley are Northstar’s hallmarks. Fruit is selected from the very best possible sources throughout the Columbia Valley. Winemaker David Merfeld works closely with each grower to achieve specific fruit quality and yield parameters. Vines average 15 years old and yield grapes with concentrated varietal flavors of cherry and plum with elegant tannins. Fruit from over 14 separate vineyards and 18 different blocks contributed to the blend.
Winemaking
At harvest, grapes were held separately, destemmed and crushed with 25% whole berries remaining. Grapes fermented on the skins for five days with daily punch downs to extract flavor, colors and fine tannins. The wine was placed into French (70%) and American (30%) oak barrels where it underwent malolactic fermentation. The barrel rotation included 70% new barrels. The lots aged separately for 18 months with barrel-to-barrel racking occurring at three month intervals.
Technical Data
Total Acidity 0.57 g/100 ml pH 3.66 Alcohol 14.7% Blend 80% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot

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