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This wine opens with intense aromas of freshly-cracked black pepper and undertones of clove and allspice. Fruity flavors of baked boysenberry, cassis, dried fruits, cocoa dust, and peppered jerky. An extraordinarily long and soft finish complemented by hints of graphite, bay leaves and vanilla.

Winery Notes: The Gallo Signature Series honors a journey that began in 1933. With some of California’s best grapes at her fingertips, third‐generation winemaker Gina Gallo has created a distinct collection of wines that could only be crafted from the Gallo family’s unique combination of vineyards. The Gallo Signature Series marks a return to smaller-lot winemaking for Gina, and it brings to life the enduring legacy of Ernest and Julio Gallo.

Located in the heart of Northern Sonoma, the Dry Creek Valley is characterized by warm days, cool nights and a long, balanced growing season. In the evening, cool maritime influences enter from the southern portion of the valley, where Dry Creek flows into the Russian River. This terroir produces wines that are refined and Bordeaux-like in their structure, body and complexity.

Winemaking Notes: The grapes were harvested and sorted by hand prior to destemming and partial crushing. The fruit was fed by gravity into 3.5-ton open-top fermenters on skins for 14-28 days, with a quarter of the blend fermented using a submerged cap. This allowed for a more gentle extraction and created softer, more elegant tannins. Following primary fermentation, the wine was racked into French and American oak barrels for malolactic fermentation to round out the mouthfeel. After overseeing the wine as individual barrel lots through the winter, we assembled the majority of the blend in April to allow the flavors to integrate. We then aged the wine in 40% new French oak barrels, 30% used French oak and 30% new American oak for a total of 16 months.

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