The ZD 2017 Rosa Lee Pinot Noir Rosé, Carneros sold out in May, and I was lucky enough to be at the vineyard in April and picked up a case. This is a lovely, fresh Rosé made from 100% California Pinot Noir!
Here’s the story: the winemaker’s grandmother, Rosa Lee, selects a wine each year for her focus. In 2017, she wanted a bright, pink wine. They located organically grown clone 777 grapes owned by fellow third generation winemaker, and friend, Buck Bartolucci. His dry-farmed Napa Carneros vineyard, only three miles from ZD’s estate property, was ideal for this year’s Rosa Lee Whim.
Each step of the winemaking process was a focused effort to allow only the naturally occurring character from the grape to be expressed before quickly bottling. Hand harvested in the cool night air on September 18, then whole cluster pressed resulted in minimal maceration. Transitioning to a slow and cold fermentation in stainless steel barrels for two months until dryness, and bottled in December of 2017.
Pale pink in color, fresh aromatics of strawberry and apricot lead to an elegant, rich mouthfeel. The flavors are balanced with bright acidity and a subtle effervescence awakening your taste buds, and releasing flavors of guava, candied apple, lemon peel, and raspberry. The finish is lingering and clean. Only 11 barrels were produced and the wine sold quickly. While its not on our Rosé flight menu, we do have this wine available by the glass or bottle, so if you love Rosé, let us know and we’ll pour you a glass!
