Last week I had the opportunity to chat with Consulting Winemaker Daniel Bontorin about his new releases and the future plans for Seven Directions Wine.
Daniel has recently created Bottega Wine Studio™ as the parent for both Seven Directions Wine and his new wine brand Bottega Wines™.
Seven Directions Wine will remain rosé exclusive.
Daniel continues as the winemaker for both Volcanic Hills and Bordertown Vineyards.
Daniel also commented that “The Pinot Noir quality is improved over 2016, which is good news for all the Pinot Noir enthusiasts like me!” He has taken over the lease of the vineyard and now has more control over the quality.
Vintage 2017 Wines
Seven Directions™ Fruitvale Ridge Vineyard Cabernet Franc Rosé
Viticulture and Winemaking
Sourced from a single vineyard, the grapes for this Cabernet Franc Rosé were sustainably farmed on the sun-drenched Fruitvale Ridge Vineyard, located in Osoyoos. The soil for these 9-year-old vines has a main layer of larger rock and shale, followed by gravel, loom and some clay. The 2017 season saw a cooler, shorter growing season. The yields were reduced to maintain a proper balance between sugar and natural acidity.
Using low intervention winemaking, these grapes were hand harvested on October 8, 20l7 at 22.72 Brix. Then crushed and pressed with no maceration besides the pressing cycle. The juice was fermented at a cool temperature in stainless steel tanks to preserve freshness and aroma.
Technical Information
Alcohol 13.5%, pH 3.29, TA 6.2g/L, RS 2.0 g/L 444 cases. Sold Out online but still available in fine restaurants.
Tasting Notes
This dry Rosé displays a clear salmon pink hue with aromatic aromas of apricots, wild strawberries and white peach followed by earthy notes. The wine has a creamy texture. Just inhale and the wine transports you to a spring meadow in Provence. This wine truly reflects the terroir of the Fruitvale Ridge Vineyard.
Seven Directions™ Tractor and Vines Pinot Noir Rosé
Viticulture and Winemaking
Sourced from a single vineyard, the grapes for this Pinot Noir Rosé were sustainably farmed on the Tractor and Vines Vineyard located in Summerland. This tiny 1.1-acre parcel sits at lake level and faces perfectly East-West. The soil for these 10-year-old vines consists of rich organic matter, silty clay loam and Fluvioglacial deposits of sandy veneer over gravel. The cooler and shorter 2017 growing season led to a smaller crop of 4.87 tons per acre. The result was a more focused balance between sugar and natural acidity.
The grapes were hand harvested on October 16, 2017, at 23.50 Brix. Then crushed, cold soaked on the skins for 2 hours, gently pressed and fermented entirely in stainless steel tanks to preserve freshness and aroma.
Technical Information
Alcohol 14.3%, pH 3.53, TA 8.4g/L, RS 4.3 g/L. 270 Cases
Tasting Notes
This slightly off-dry Pinot Noir Rosé exhibits a gorgeous grapefruit and watermelon hue, with an aroma packed nose bursting with granny smith apples, cherry blossoms, rose petals and ripe peach. The palate has a fresh juicy texture, adding hints of spice and salt that leads to a long mouth-watering creamy finish. A wonderful wine that just needs a warm summer day on the patio to fully enjoy.
For the Seven Directions Wines tasting notes for the 2018 releases see our later post –Bottega Wine Studio / Seven Directions New Releases.