Unique Beauty

Vintage variation, or how wine differs from year to year. The same varietals, the same vineyard, the same equipment and hands involved, and yet the differences can be striking. 

That is the beauty of Mother Nature. We embrace these differences, the unique beauty, the quirks. 

Uniformity is not the goal. Every vintage carries its own story. 

With 31 years of winemaking experience between Alison and me, never has the vintage variation been more apparent than in this example: 2023, which we are releasing to you now, and 2026, which is currently underway.  

2023 was a historically cool, wet year resulting in a very long growing season and a late, but plentiful harvest. We had two spells of warmer temperatures, one in early September, which helped to ripen the whites and rosé. The other came in early October, which pushed all the reds to ripeness in one week. We were very busy and had a very full cellar. The wines show vibrancy, depth and structure.  

In stark contrast, 2026 started out with heavy early rains from October through November. Then a very warm and dry pattern set in, which pushed our growing season to begin three weeks earlier than normal. The vines continued to track early all season, and on August 4 we started picking, three weeks earlier than average. So far, the crop has been light, but the flavors and aromas are intense.  

After decades of making wine, just when we think we’ve started to master the craft, distinct vintages like 2023 and 2026 remind us how much there is still to discover. Through wine, we tell a story, and no two are the same.

Cheers,

Alecia Moore - head wino