Stonestreet Legacy Meritage Red 2005
Varietal: Bordeaux Red Blends
Vineyard: Stonestreet
Region: Sonoma County, California
This 2005 Legacy is the sixteenth release of our Bordeaux-style varietal blend. With this vintage, we selected lots of wine from our estate vineyards in the hills and eastern mountains enclosing the southern end of the Alexander Valley. Elevation is the key to this wine's combination of boldness and elegance.
The 2005 vintage of Legacy is led by Cabernet Sauvignon which makes up 82% of the blend and is from both hillside and mountain vineyards in the Alexander Valley. The mountain vineyards reach up to 2,400 feet in elevation and are planted on our Alexander Mountain Estate. Higher altitude creates its own climate which is different from the vineyards planted on the valley floor. Even on the warmest summer days, the cooling influence of the Pacific Ocean twenty miles away can be felt. Soils, too, are significantly different. On the mountain, the soil is thin, rocky and gravelly. This helps produce fruit that is complex, rich and concentrated.
The blend is further enhanced by the contributions of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot fruit sourced from our Legacy vineyards in the Alexander Valley.
We complement the powerful fruit by using only small, thin-staved French oak barrels to age this wine. The resulting wine is supple and leads with notes of graphite and black currant. Look also for hints of smoky toastiness and concentrated black cherries.
