2009 Vintage - Winemaker's Notes
Thomas George Estates’ inaugural vintage in our new facility was wildly successful. We are proud of the reception given our 2009 wines by our guests, Wine Club Members, our Distributors and Restaurants…really by everyone who has had the opportunity to try them. Thank you all, we will ensure that we continue to provide a wonderful wine experience to each of you!
The winter of 2009 was relatively dry, 10 inches below yearly average. The spring was somewhat mild with an earlier than normal bud break. Everything was moving along well, though in the back of my mind, there was always the concern of an early and accelerated harvest due to lower than normal moisture in the ground, and the prediction of a hotter than usual summer. We also experienced an unbelievable number of wild fires in California during the summer months. The smoke in some of the northern most regions was more intense and lasted longer than I had seen in my lifetime. Fortunately, we have not experienced smoke taint in our wines.
Elevated mid-August temperatures accelerated maturity on our Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier allowing for an even earlier than predicted physiological ripeness. With seeds beginning to amber, and well developed flavors, we kicked off our 2008 harvest on August 22 with our Russian River (Windsor Oak) Sauvignon Blanc. Three days later we brought in Schmidt Family (Rancho Tzabaco, the original ranch, not Gallo’s) Viognier and Sauvignon Musque. All three of these wines are tank fermented and are bursting with fruit forward aromatics.
We harvested our Baker Ridge Pinot Noir August 26 thru Aug. 30. We began with our Pommard clones, moved into our Dijon 115, and finished with our Martini and Swan clones. All are proving to be the elegant wines we were expecting from our Baker Ridge Vineyard.
Nearing the end of August the heat began to rise again…in fact, we survived a 106 degree day on Aug. 28. At this point, with the weather staying around 100 degrees each day, we brought in fruit almost every day, finishing our harvest period Sept. 9. We purchased Pinot Noir (clones 777 and Pommard) from the Lancel Creek Vineyard of Ulises Valdez which is located on the edge of Russian River Appellation off Morelli Rd. We also purchased Pinot Noir from Annapolis, in the Sonoma Coast Region and from two other Russian River Valley vineyards.
While tasting through these wines we get the sense that we ‘nailed’ our harvest decisions. The wines are all well-balanced and complex with superb varietal aromatics and palate characteristics. Our 2008 wines are excellent
