2022 Whitcraft Winery Stolpman Vineyard Grenache, Ballard Canyon, USA

Grapes are handpicked and sorted. Theyre lightly trodden by foot allowing carbonic to start. A pied de cuvee made from sampling juice is added to kick start fermentation. The wine is blanketed with CO2 until the cuvee is generating its own. After around three days when the skins start to loosen manual punchdowns are started once or twice per day. After 12 days the cap is lifted and the wine is drained through a sieve, theres no pumping, everything is by gravity. Free run juice goes to single vineyard cuvees. The wine rests in barrels for around 11 months, 10ppm SO2 added in December. Wines are unfined, clarification is through gentle racking. Bottling is by hand.