iNwine Wednesday: Hester Creek Estate Winery Garland
Last night we opened the luscious 2015 Garland from Hester Creek Estate Winery in Oliver. Yum. 2015 was the 50-year anniversary of the original planting of vinifera vines in 1968 so this is an exciting opportunity to taste wine created from one of our celebrated pioneer vineyards.
This was a limited-edition Bordeaux-style blend featuring the vineyard's celebrated old vine cabernet franc and old vine merlot blended with cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot and malbec. Named for owner Curt Garland, this beautiful wine is a blend of Hester Creek's best and offers a full, rich mouthful of rich dark fruits with an earthy balance from a touch of wood and a note of spice. Perfect on its own to sip by the fire or amazing with steak or roasted leg of lamb... or chocolate.
The 2017 Garland is available now at the winery or online: store.hestercreek.com
Online description of the 2017:
Crafted in small lots from beautifully ripened estate fruit, this rich and polished cuvée shows lifted aromas of cedar, coconut, leather, blackberry, and sage, with spicy cinnamon and nutmeg. An expressive and silky palate follows of concentrated blackberry, currants and black cherry flavours. Medium soft tannins round out a lingering finish. A wine to cellar, enjoy with marbled ribeye and a blackberry jus.
Vineyard Notes:
The 2015/16 winter was relatively mild with no extended periods of major freezing, resulting in uniform bud break. Spring was one of the driest on record; with Growing Degree Days (GDDs) the highest ever recorded in May. These warm, dry conditions resulted in bud break two weeks earlier than anticipated. The warm temperatures continued through June, suggesting that harvest could commence as much as a month earlier than normal. However, temperatures changed in July; making it the fourth coldest July on record. This cooling July trend, combined with some unseasonal rain, slowed down the ripening process resulting in beautifully complex flavours. Cool fall nights ensured great acid structure. Harvest commenced in early September, much earlier than normal. Overall, the 2016 vintage was outstanding for both whites and reds.
Winemaker Notes:
A sophisticated, Cabernet dominant blend, this is one of the last wines to ferment in our cellar. A true expression of “The Golden Mile”, the fruit is hand-picked from our estate in small lots. The fruit is sorted and left on “the skins” to ferment up to 20 days in our Italian Ganimede fermenters. The Cabernet and Merlot lots are fermented separately, while the Petit Verdot and Malbec are co-fermented. After the gentle maceration process, the individual lots are pressed, blended and then barrel aged in predominantly medium plus toast, French barriques, for a minimum of 18 months. A rich, Bordeaux style red that is a fitting tribute to our historic vineyard.
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