jasoh! Prime and Pub presents our Geyser Peak Cabernet Sauvignon:
jasoh! Prime and Pub has no corkage fees on Wednesdays but if you can’t decide on a wine to bring in tonight one of our favorites is the Geyser peak cabernet. Here is a little bit about the winery, the winemakers, and the wine itself. jasoh! recommends the oxidization pour spout for the first glass, then a decanter to open this complex and enjoyable Cabernet.
Geyser Peak Cabernet Sauvignon '05
Big and Bold!
Winemaker's notes:
Known for luscious Cabernet Sauvignons, this wine is a classic example of Geyser Peak Winery's intense, lively style. Forward fruit characters of black cherry and blackberry dominate the aromas, with underlying grace notes of dark chocolate and spice.
In typical Geyser Peak style, the bright fruit is nicely supported by a restrained oak character. The palate is rich, round and lush, seamlessly pairing the cherry and berry fruit with a hint of spice and vanilla. The fine-grained tannins meld into a persistent, lingering finish.
Critical acclaim:
90 Points by The Wine News
"Heady, forward aromas of blueberry, plum and mint with hints of charred oak and graphite. Supple and ripe with accessible black fruit flavors laced with soft tannins and tempered acidity. A touch of youthful astringency in the close checks the sweetness; drinking nicely right now."
Our History
A long heritage of winemaking
With a relatively recent resurgence, Geyser Peak Winery's roots in Sonoma County winemaking run deep. Founded in 1880 by Augustus Quitzow, one of Sonoma County's pioneer winemakers, the original winery was built in Geyserville in 1882. Perched on a hillside across from Geyser Peak Mountain, the winery claimed a view of the clouds of thermal steam that billowed from the mountain's summit. Today, Geyser Peak is one of the most award-winning wineries in Sonoma County. We invite you to visit to experience Geyser Peak first hand.
1846
– Cyrus Alexander was among earliest settlers
1880
– Pioneering wineries, including Geyser Peak Winery, begin to appear
1984
– Official designation of Alexander Valley as an American Viticultural Area (AVA)
Today
– Widely recognized as a preeminent region for Cabernet Sauvignon
Making a Difference
In other 'green’ areas, we aggressively participate in the following daily disciplines:
- Recycling throughout the entire facility, from employee areas, the cellar and production
- Our wine bottles are 'Eco' or Ecologically Friendly. 35-55% of the glass used is from recycled, or 'cullet' glass
- Harvest byproducts, such as grape pumice and stems, are composted
- Non-chlorinated cleaning chemicals are used in the winery
- Ozone generators are used for sanitizing barrels and equipment
- Waste water is redistributed
- Recognized and certified by the Fish Friendly Farming practices
We've been recognized by the Practical Winery & Vineyard for this initiative. Practical Winery & Vineyard is a 30-year-old, wine and vineyard industry journal that reaches 4,000 readers. PWV is the only publication in the industry that focuses on the practical, hands-on aspects of winery and vineyard operations. In every issue, winemaking and grapegrowing are covered in depth, with articles discussing proven methods, innovations, case histories, industry trends, and insights from peers.
The Perfect Marriage of Grape to Place
Alexander Valley offers one of the most diverse wine growing environments of any sub-appellation in California. On the valley floor, along the ancient path of the Russian River, can be found alluvial soils and richer soils, heavy in sandy clay loam and scattered with gravel. Vines grown here will tend toward unwanted vigor and must be farmed with assiduous effort to retain quality. Move higher up, to the benches and hillsides off the valley floor, and you will find an astonishingly diverse array of soils arising from decomposed volcanic rocks, serpentine, granite and even marine uplift. This is excellent Cabernet country.
Walking Tree Vineyard
The small, beautifully situated Walking Tree Vineyard is a newly developed site on a steep slope directly above the winery estate, planted as part of Winemaker Ondine Chattan's ongoing effort to seek out more hillside Cabernet Sauvignon vines in Alexander Valley. During the clearing of the site in 2001, our vineyard crew was struck by a remarkable tree which, over a period of months, "walked" from the vineyard's summit down the steep grade, while remaining completely upright. Thus, the vineyard seemed to name itself. The Geyser Peak Winery viticulture team has been able to control every aspect of this site's development. Under the direction of Viticulturist Mike Stutler, the choice of row direction, trellising, clones, rootstock and all other vineyard practices are in keeping with the development of a world-class hillside Cabernet site. The very lean soil and substantial rock in the vineyard's upper horizon lessen fertility and keep fruit and berry clusters small, while sun exposure and microclimate provide ideal ripening conditions.
This ripe, full bodied wine reflects the unique topography and microclimate of Walking Tree vineyard, with its morning sun influence and mid-valley elevation. Comprised of 12 pristine acres near the Geyser Peak Winery in the heart of Alexander Valley, Walking Tree's eastern facing rows bask in bright sunshine during the morning and are protected from direct sun during the hot afternoon. This balanced sun exposure promotes slow, steady ripening and ideal flavor development
Alexander Valley is synonymous with world-class Cabernet Sauvignon.
The microclimate and terroir within the appellation create unique vineyard sites. The different climates, soils, and topographies of Alexander Valley help create remarkable diversity, and are an ideal place for producing fresh, crisp white wines, and big bold red wines. Specifically with these conditions, Cabernet Sauvignon exhibits remarkable richness and complexity, with flavor profiles defined by black fruits, ripe berry, cherry, sweet spice and plush tannins. These wines are known for having both early drinkability and age worthiness.
A growing region so exceptional, you can actually taste it in the wine. This is because the valley's climate is marked by cool mornings and hot afternoons, resulting in long ripening seasons. The soils are clay and gravelly loam, which control the vine vigor and increases berry flavor and intensity. The topography varies dramatically throughout the valley, from rich floodplains on the valley floor to rocky benchlands and hillsides. The result is a winemakers’ delight of varied nuances and flavor profiles.
Rotary Fermentation
Much passion and care go into the growing of our grapes, so our winemakers insist on treating the grapes in the gentlest manner possible during harvest and fermentation. The use of rotary fermentation is an an excellent mechanism to ensure the most effective extraction of rich, full-bodied, intensely-colored wines from our grapes.
The juice and flesh of most red grapes is clear while the skins contain color and tannin. It is only through the process of fermentation that color pigments, tannins, and phenolics are liberated from the skins into the wine milieu. Once the grapes are harvested and brought to the winery, the stems are removed and the berries are crushed to create the juice/pulp/skin slurry known as "must." The density of the must is high due to elevated sugar levels and the skins are initially suspended throughout the liquid.
Once fermentation commences, carbon dioxide gas is produced by yeast and the lightweight skins are pushed to the top of the tank. Here's where they aggregate and form a thick layer known as the "cap." In order to extract color and flavors, the skins need to be in contact with the juice. Traditionally, this is done by "punching down" the cap or by circulating the juice over the cap ("pumping over"). Yet another option is to use a rotary fermenter, which achieves these same goals gently, efficiently and effectively.
A rotary fermenter is cylindrical in shape much like a standard tank; however, instead of standing upright the cylinder is oriented on its side. Rather than circulating the juice over the cap, the entire tank is rotated. The principle is simple: a spiraled helix is built into the walls of the rotary to act as an auger when the tank is rotated. When the tank is rotated counterclockwise, the skins are pushed to the rear of the fermenter, submerging them in the juice. When spun clockwise, the skins are gently returned to the front of the fermenter. Submerging the skins in this manner facilitates complete homogenization of the skins and juice and permits optimal extraction. This process is performed three times per day for up to five days. Upon the winemakers' direction, the wine is then drained from the skins directly to oak barriques, where fermentation is completed.
Barrel Fermentation
While we use the more traditional techniques for barrel fermenting most of our Chardonnay wines, we take a slightly different tact in barrel fermenting some of our red wines in the pursuit of unique, more complex tastes. How? By draining down rotary and static fermenters directly to the oak barrel while there are still a few degrees Brix (a measurement of the percentage of sugar in a fruit juice) in the must (the juice/pulp/skin slurry.) This allows the last few percent of sugar to be finished off while in contact with the oak in barrels. We find that we get a better integration of oak flavor in our wines though this unique process. And ultimately, achieving more complex red wines.
Meet Ondine Chattan, Director of Winemaking
Growing up close to wine country in Marin County, California, Ondine Chattan was enthralled with art, science and nature from an early age. From exploring marshlands near her home to studying insects and flowering plants, Ondine’s interest in science grew over time into a love of biology and chemistry. The daughter of an artist and theatre set designer, Ondine was drawn also to fine art and spent considerable time visiting museum exhibits in nearby San Francisco. She wrested with conflicting desires to pursue either scientific or creative disciplines; however, it took only a single introductory lecture on viticulture, at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) in San Luis Obispo, for Ondine to realize that she’d found a pursuit which combined her interests in hard science and subjective aesthetics.
After her first job at Sonoma’s Cline Cellars, well-known produces of old-vine Zinfandels and other unique varieties, Ondine went back to school for a Master’s in Enology from Fresno State University. After graduation, she went to work at Ridge Vineyards – another winery, like Cline, known for being unflinchingly idiosyncratic, and for using traditional, time-honored winemaking techniques.
It’s this merger of the established techniques of winemaking with California’s native and relentless pursuit of the new which drives Ondine today. As Ondine comments, “Winemaking is a wonderful mix of extreme fields. For instance, we use chemistry everyday, but we also use intuition.” To this end, Ondine’s interests in sustainable viticulture, vineyard and soil expression and such ‘risky’ techniques as native yeast fermentations are perfectly intertwined.
Meet Jaeson Mackura, Associate Winemaker
Growing up on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Jaeson was immersed in a diversity of foods, climates, and cultures. Although Jaeson’s family moved to California in the 1980’s, and settled in the South San Francisco suburb of San Carlos, he never lost his love of the outdoors, plants and gardening. Upon graduating from high school, he enrolled at U.C. Davis. While originally unsure of his career path, his desire to combine his interest of the natural sciences with his creative side led him to enroll in an introductory winemaking class.
As he delved further into his studies of viticulture and enology, he quickly realized he truly enjoyed the winemaking side. Fortunately, he didn’t have to choose, as he became a part of the first graduating class of the new Viticulture & Enology Bachelors of Science at U.C. Davis in 1998. He started his career working part of 1996 vintage with the team at Thomas Fogarty Winery crafting Pinot Noirs, Chardonnays and Cabernets from the Santa Cruz Mountain appellation, followed by a harvest internship at RH Philips in the Dunnigan Hills. Just a month prior to his graduation from U.C. Davis, Jaeson started work at the Buena Vista’s Carneros Winery, first as a cellar worker, where he oversaw the white press operations for the 1998 harvest. He was quickly promoted to Enologist, followed by Assistant Winemaker in 2001, and finally accepting the role of Associate Winemaker in 2004.
Since joining Geyser Peak in June 2010, Jaeson brings his expertise and talents to the production of the winery’s award winning wines. “I’m excited to be joining the fantastic team here at Geyser Peak, and look forward to the opportunity to expand my winemaking expertise”, says Mackura. When not busy with the daily workings of the iconic Alexander Valley Winery, Jaeson is an exceptionally skilled handyman specializing in carpentry and electrical having recently completed an extensive addition to his Santa Rosa home, where he resides with his wife Kelly and daughter Julia.
To find the Winery or the website go to:
Just north of San Francisco
22281 Chianti Road, Geyserville, CA (707) 857-9463
http://www.geyserpeakwinery.com/
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