2010 “GAMBLE VINEYARD” SAUVIGNON BLANC

Philosophy

At Gamble Family Wines we strive to make truly memorable wines which are delicious and well balanced; wines which are made all the more enjoyable when paired with good food, good friends and those you love. Vineyards and Harvest

The twelve-acre Gamble Vineyard sits at the northerly edge of the Yountville Appellation in the geographic center of Napa Valley. This superb site, framed by rugged mountains to the east and west and bound by two rivers, is warm enough to develop Sauvignon Blanc’s tropical fruit flavors, yet cool enough to retain its natural fruit balance and crispness. Tom Gamble chose his bud wood by massale selection, a traditional practice of obtaining cuttings from great vineyards possessing highly desirable traits. Half of the Gamble vineyard is planted to the Sauvignon Musque clone, a third generation of the original bud wood brought from the Loire in the 1950s. The other half is planted to the Preston (Lou Preston) clone, descended from the Graves region of Bordeaux. We farm organically to achieve healthy and balanced vines. Our fruit is hand-harvested cold, in the early hours of the day, and taken directly to the press to preserve fruit and flavor integrity.

Winemaking

We picked fruit from the vineyard on eight separate occasions and fermented all lots ranging in size from two to nine tons separately. The first lot of grapes came in to the winery on August 30th and the last lot on September 8th. By harvesting so many times and managing so many different fermentations we were able to gain several benefits. The early fruit helped to preserve the wine’s crisp acidity. The wine made from the later picks had greater depth of flavor. To further increase complexity we fermented 26% of the fruit in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, where slow (65 days), cool fermentations (as low as 41F) resulted in clean, bright, tropical fruit flavors. The remaining 74% was fermented in barrel in the cool cave, contributing enhanced mouthfeel and lightly-spiced honeycomb flavors. Native yeasts were allowed to work on both the tank and barrel wines, slowly turning the sugars to alcohol and imparting yet greater dimensions of texture and flavor. Each component had its unique character and when finally blended together created a wine that has great complexity and layers of flavor.

Winemaker Jim Close’s Tasting Notes

Fresh aromas of guava, honeysuckle, honeydew melon and fig. A focused line of acidity frames a myriad of flavors: quince, lime, guava and nectarine with a hint of smoky flint. Moderate alcohol and rich textural elements provide a perfect platform for this summer citrus cocktail to sing.

Technical Data

Composition

48% vrais Sauvignon Musque de Loire, 52% Preston Sauvignon Blanc

Appellation

Gamble Vineyard, Yountville, Napa Valley

Cellaring

74% in barrel on the lees for six months, 26% in stainless steel on the lees for six months

Oak

French (Remond, Marchive, Bel Air) & Hungarian (Kadar) oak (17% new)

Alcohol

13.5%

TA

0.77 g/100mL

pH

3.12

Cases Produced

2,350 cases

Suggested Retail

$32.00