2017 Black Russian Red
McGregor Saperavi: America's first success with Saperavi. This thick and opaque wine has a deep ruby color and very complex aromas and flavors; it’s a smooth wine with attitude. The aromas are reminiscent of spice, bourbon barrels, oak, and black and blue fruits (super ripe plums and blueberries) along with an underlying woodsy, mossy, and fresh soil character. It is just as diverse on the palate. It’s a big, broad, and spacious wine with a peppery character along with flavors of sweet oak, toasted coconut, spice, black currant and a touch of serrano pepper, tobacco and smoke. The finish is smooth and lingering. Enjoy with your favorite grilled steaks, smoked turkey, Cassoulet, and dark chocolate. Decant for at least a few hours if not all day if you open this wine now. This wine can be cellared at least to 2030-2035.
The first batch of estate grown Saperavi and Sereksiya grapes were harvested on October 19, 2017 and had 21 brix natural sugar, 11.6 g/l TA and 3.25 pH. The grapes were crushed, inoculated with yeast and fermented for nine days at 62-79 degrees. A second parcel of these grapes were harvested by hand on October 23rd and had 23.3 brix, 10.9 g/l TA and 3.31 pH. Their fermentation lasted for 10 days at 60-75 degrees. Both batches completed a full malolactic fermentation, were pressed and then blended. The wine was aged in American oak barrels for 31 months and then transferred to stainless steel. It was then egg white fined, cold stabilized, and filtered. On August 13, 2020, the wine was bottled. It has 7.0 g/l TA, 3.54 pH, 0.4% residual sugar and 13.4% alcohol. 230 cases produced.
