Well the 100 lbs of frozen 2021 WA grenache has been sleeping in the barrel room in bulk since AF was completed in Dec. Malo finished in Jan and so two weeks ago I sampled the progress with my daughter. I knew it was going to be weak in the color department, even from the beginning. I had utilized Llazyme EX but not sure if application was successful. None the less AF went flawlessly and into carboy she went.
Part of my trepidation had to do with watering back. I did not draw a saignee and my intuition had me thinking "watery".
So when I got it into a glass the true color showed itself. Nice looking, just light. Darker than a Rose, maybe a little darker than a Tavel style wine?
Tasting impressions:
Nose - still looking....
Initial perception of sweetness in a good way
Slight candy taste which you can get with lighter ripe grenache
Body or structure - still looking.....
Feels like it should at a moderate alcohol level but disappointed in the lack of "umph" or body.
I still think it will blend well with probably Syrah since it has no real negatives, just wish it had more of it's own character, good bad or indifferent.
Still happy as this is just my second fermentation and the first that actually went according to a rough plan.
Here she is side by side with a cheap midling tasting Spanish garnacha.
Part of my trepidation had to do with watering back. I did not draw a saignee and my intuition had me thinking "watery".
So when I got it into a glass the true color showed itself. Nice looking, just light. Darker than a Rose, maybe a little darker than a Tavel style wine?
Tasting impressions:
Nose - still looking....
Initial perception of sweetness in a good way
Slight candy taste which you can get with lighter ripe grenache
Body or structure - still looking.....
Feels like it should at a moderate alcohol level but disappointed in the lack of "umph" or body.
I still think it will blend well with probably Syrah since it has no real negatives, just wish it had more of it's own character, good bad or indifferent.
Still happy as this is just my second fermentation and the first that actually went according to a rough plan.
Here she is side by side with a cheap midling tasting Spanish garnacha.