HAWLEY WINES
2005 Pinot Noir
Russian River Valley


    Technical
  • Appellation: Russian River Valley
  • Varietal Composition: 100% Pinot Noir
  • Harvest Dates: Sept. 4, 22, 30 (Oehlman)     Sept. 3, 13, 28 (Rousseau)
  • Alcohol: 13.9%      Ph: 3.89     TA: .63
  • Bottling Date: February 13, 2007
  • Cases Bottled: 572
  • Release Date: April 1, 2007

Vineyards
The grapes for this Hawley Pinot Noir came from two vineyards in the Russian River Valley appellation. Seventy-one percent of this Pinot Noir came from Oehlman Vineyard, located on Vine Hill. This steep South East facing slope is planted with the Martini and Pomard clones and farmed by Karl Oehlman and his family. Rousseau Vineyard, also on Vine Hill Road, is planted to Dijon clone 116 and makes up twenty-nine percent of this blend. Jacques Rousseau hand farms this small vineyard. The 2005 growing season started several weeks early due to warm February weather, but it soon cooled down and remained cool throughout the season. This slowed ripening and the additional “hang time” on the vine led to exceptional flavor development and allowed us to take our time and pick blocks as they reached maturity. In 2005 the Pinot Noir crop for both vineyards was less than two tons per acre, resulting in extremely concentrated flavors. Brix at harvest 24.5

Winemaking
The ripe fruit was de-stemmed and crushed into small one-ton open-top fermentors and chilled using dry ice. After a week of maceration, the must was allowed to warm up and wild yeasts began fermentation. A small inoculum of yeast was added to control the fermentation. At dryness, the skins were pressed out using a 100 year old manual basket press to ensure astringent characters are not pressed out. The wine is pressed directly into French Burgundy barrels (50% new) and aged for 15 months.

Tasting Notes
This Pinot Noir shows complex aromas of coffee and vanilla to complement the deep cherry and raspberry flavors from the grapes. In the mouth the wine is rich and opulent, with generous ripe fruit flavors and a long, silky-smooth finish. This wine will continue to improve for many years to come.

Hawley Wine
PO Box 1831, Healdsburg CA. 95448
6387 West Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg CA. 95448
Phone/Fax 707-431-2705
www.hawleywine.com