Hand-harvested, clusters were sorted in the vineyard and then gently destemmed following an evening in our cold room. All ‘jack stems’ were removed on the sorting table. Musts were cold soaked in open-top fermenters for five days, and then inoculated with cultured yeasts to begin slow fermentation. Each tank was manually punched down two times per day, with a total maceration time of fourteen to eighteen days. Upon completion of primary fermentation and maceration, all free run wine was transferred to tank for settling and then pressed at extremely low pressure (0.08 bars) to avoid extracting bitterness. After settling overnight both free-run and press wines were racked to barrels. Southing was bottled with no fining and no filtration.
The ever-changing nose of the Southing exhibits fresh strawberry, geranium, Montmorency cherry; and subtle baking spices. The fine tannins and minerality are enhanced by our estate vineyard’s characteristic cool climate acidity.
