The 2017 growing season was a classic California summer of warm, sunny days followed by cool, clear nights. Soft and lush, the 2017 Encosta reflects the generous character of the vintage, displaying the flashy side of the estate with rich, dark fruits and warm baking spices. As the vines enter their second decade of life, their maturity is delivers us with impressive concentration and intensity, all the hallmarks of the qualities that have made this hill so famous.

Grapes arrive to the winery immediately after picking to be vinified in small lots. The winemaking team first hand-sorts individual clusters, selecting the finest for crushing and de-stemming. Then, individual berries are sorted, removing those with imperfections. The remaining grapes are transferred to concrete tanks for fermentation by a bin/gravity flow process. Once fermentation is complete, the wine is pressed and placed in French oak barrels for aging in Gandona Estate’s cave.