Producer Article

Bill Hatcher, 3/12/09 - 2007 A to Z Wineworks Rose’: “Certain wines are curiously redolent of long forgotten memories. For me, the 2007 A to Z Rosé evokes the film, Enchanted April, I saw maybe fifteen years ago. For those not familiar, it is the gorgeously languid story of four older women who retreat from London for a month to a seaside villa in Italy. For whatever mysterious reason that goes with such things, it just seems the quintessential setting for this wine right now as we near April and yearn for sun. Coincidentally, its roots are Italian. Not another limp, leftover saignée from over-cropped Pinot Noir, it is pure Sangiovese cold-soaked and fermented in a vessel solely dedicated to the Rosé. The grapes are harvested just shy of absolute ripeness to retain the acidity that gives the fresh character of youthful Sangiovese and provides the wine backbone so many Rosés want (but lack). In a cover story on Rosé a little while back, the Wine Spectator listed our wine (A to Z Rosé) as the only domestic offering among its recommendations - take that! Let’s face it. Most of us don’t age Rosés for good reasons but most Rosés are not harvested and crafted for perfect balance. In this case, don’t let the delicate coral color dissuade - it’s like a beautiful woman who needs no makeup (Enchanted April once again!). This wine has blueberries and strawberries that greet the nose along with a hint of violets. The ripeness of the fruit still dances on the tongue; even though some of the brightness is gone, the purity of fruit remains. While Northern Oregon struggled with maturity in 2007, this wine comes from the warm southern Rogue Valley where a cooler than usual summer and languorous autumn yielded a vintage of impeccably balanced ripeness that persists to this moment. I like this wine, I like it a lot”