Fortress Vineyards |
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The Red Hills Are Not Just For Reds Anymore: Achieving A Complex,
Elegant Sauvignon Blanc Style On A Mountain-Top
Today, nearly all wineries and growers in the relatively new AVA
Red Hills are producing reds — primarily Cabernet Sauvignon,
but also Syrah, Zinfandel and others. And, many articles have already
been written about the ultra-premium quality of red grapes coming
from this region. Now, Fortress Vineyards surmounts the red-only
reputation, proving that ultra-premium Sauvignon Blanc grapes and
wine can be achieved on a mountain vineyard in the Red Hills.
Fortress Vineyards is a vineyard positioned high above Clear Lake
2,000-2,400 feet and the valley floor on Mount Konocti. This was
virgin land prior to the development of the vineyard in 1998. It
benefits from well-drained soils, outstanding sun exposure and the
constant cooling breezes moving from the lake and along the mountains
on the North-South vector. The Snider family began growing high-quality
grapes over fifteen years ago when they purchased a 90 acre parcel
of land in the then little-known Knights Valley appellation of Sonoma
County. Years later they turned their attention to Lake County,
which now includes the Red Hills AVA and is being touted as one
of the "up-and-coming" stars in Northern California.
The Wine: Sauvignon Blanc
Lake County has a reputation for producing quality Sauvignon Blanc.
Most of the Sauvignon Blanc plantings however, have been on valley
floor with vigorous growth and high yields. The team at Fortress
Vineyards knows from close to 20 years of growing Cabernet Sauvignon,
Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grapes that wine quality is a reflection
of terroir and viticultural practices. When choosing to make this
first vintage, the Snider family examined the steep vineyard mountain
site at 2,000 feet elevation and with well-drained red volcanic
soils. The vines produced moderate yields, small bunches and small
berries, resulting in highly concentrated and complex flavor profiles.
This is key to distinguishing wine quality emanating from the typical
Sauvignon Blanc with larger bunches, larger berries and a much simpler
flavor profile. They turned to the Sauvignon Musque clone that exhibits
flavor profiles very similar to the wines produced in Graves in
Bordeaux, France.
The Grape: Sauvignon Musque
Fortress Vineyards focuses only on one grape varietal- Sauvignon
Musque "the flamboyant Bordeaux clone" — and on one
wine — Sauvignon Blanc made from 100% Sauvignon Musque grapes.
In 1998, a large vineyard block with the Sauvignon Musque clone
was planted at the Red Hills Lake County vineyard and more vines
were recently planted at their Knights Valley property. "Making
the commitment to the Sauvignon Musque clone is based on our belief
that there is a niche to be filled in the Sauvignon Blanc category:
an aromatic, fruit-driven style with a softer mouth feel that is
still true to the varietal character, with racy acidity," says
owner Barbara Snider.
A growing number of premium Sauvignon Blanc wineries, primarily
in Napa and Alexander Valleys (made by wineries such as Araujo,
Selene, Cakebread, Murphy-Goode), are using some Sauvignon Musque
to varying degrees in their wines, but very few are concentrating
exclusively on this style.
The Winemaking Approach
Fortress Vineyards developed its winemaking approach over a two-year
period by making Sauvignon Musque wine from grapes picked at various
brix (sugar) levels to better understand the potential of this clone.
The experiment led to the decision to pick the grapes at two different
times and two different sugar levels. Gary Snider explains: "During
our earlier trials, we learned that at low brix (sugar), the Sauvignon
Musque exhibits the same acidity and structure as the more widely
used Sauvignon Blanc Clone #1. However, at a higher brix, the Sauvignon
Musque clone exhibits fresh combinations of tropical, citrus, floral,
and even exotic fruit in a honey-like elixir with great viscosity.
The Sauvignon Musque is totally unique in this respect." For
the 2004 vintage, the first pick was at 22.5° brix to retain
the natural acidity of the Sauvignon Blanc and the second at 26°
brix to achieve mature, full flavors. A small portion (about 30%)
of this later pick undergoes malolactic fermentation in 2-3 year-old
French oak barrels. The final blend has layers of complexity and
additional weight.
Fortress Sauvignon Blanc:
Wine release date: April 2005
Number of cases produced: 1,400 cases
Retail cost: $20
100% Sauvignon Blanc, Musque clone
TA: 5.58
Alcohol: 14.2%
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Press Kit
Background
Bios: Gary
and Barbara Snider, Owners (PDF, 15 KB)
Bios:
Mark Burch, Winemaker and Mike Abba, Viticulturalist (PDF, 11
KB)
Fortress
Viticultural Techniques (PDF, 11 KB)
Fortress Sauvignon Blanc: The Wine (PDF, 11 KB)
Press Release
The
Red Hills Are Not Just For Reds Anymore (PDF, 53 KB)
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