Wine Specs
Harvest Date
September 19, 2024
Aging
Enjoy now or cellar up to 5 years
Bottling Date
June 19, 2025
2024 Merlot
New Release!
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Aromas of mulberry, ripe cherry, sagebrush, and cacao, followed by a soft full palate laden with dark chocolate, blackberry and vanilla. Pair with classic spaghetti Bolognese.
Vineyard Notes
The 2024 vintage from Hester Creek was sourced from just south of the border in the Columbia Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA). This AVA and its sub-AVAs were chosen for the proximity and similarities to the South Okanagan with respect to terroir, varietals and viticultural history. We chose the vineyard blocks based on our quality standards and all the winemaking was done in-house by our winemaking team. Across the sub-AVAs, bud break began in late March with a cool spring. By July, temperatures climbed to above average and balanced out the Growing Degree Days. The season produced large grape clusters with small berry sizes, leading to great quality fruit for winemaking. Each cluster of grapes for Hester Creek was hand harvested, starting with our Sauvignon Blanc on September 2, and ending with Cabernet Sauvignon on October 11. The grapes were brought to our crush pad in recyclable containers and hand sorted by our team before continuing the winemaking process.
Winemaker Notes
Between the hours of 4:00am and 9:00am each day, the 2024 Merlot was hand harvested in the Red
Mountain AVA and loaded onto temperature-controlled trucks to be brought to the Hester Creek crush pad. Once here, our winemaking team hand sorted the bunches, and the destemmed grapes were cold soaked for two days prior to inoculation. After a 10-day fermentation, the wine was encouraged through malolactic fermentation to bring out the rich textures of the wine. It was then pressed off the skins and cross blended before being aged for eight months in a combination of American and French oak. The wine was racked, blended and bottled on June 19, 2025.
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