Silica Merlot 2022
In Stock
Wine Specs
Vintage
2022
Varietal
Merlot
Appellation
Golden Mile Slopes
Cases Produced
189
Acid
5.6 g/L
pH
3.70
Residual Sugar
.3 g/L
Alcohol %
14.3
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Medium burgundy with garnet highlights. Colour is just a little more intense than that of the Alluvia
Nose features rich cherry and kirsch, vanilla bean, red licorice, cassis jam. A sort of black-forest-cake profile overall. Nice intensity and familiar Silica characters!
Palate has great volume, smooth and dry with a lot of spice on the finish, balanced acidity. A classic Merlot!
Decant or set aside for aging, keep 3-5 years or more.
Production Notes
2022 was a cooler & rainier vintage, but a record tonnage was produced and the long, warm October helped flavour and colour development get to the quality level where we want our Merlot to be. Silica does tend to thrive in wetter conditions since the soil has good drainage, and not surprisingly this vintage turned out great. Silica was picked October 22nd and 23rd, fermented in tank for 4 weeks, pressed and then aged in new & neutral French oak barriques for 20 months. Bottling is planned in two batches so total case production is approximately 450 cases at time of writing.
Winemaker Notes
Some interesting barrel information! (same as Alluvia note)
Due to being 20 tons over the usual crop, we had to scramble for as many barrels as we could find! We got two extra new barrels for a total of four in the blend, and used a combination of 2nd and 3rd fill barrels to round out the profile. So the breakdown for the 20-barrel blend is: 4 new, 3 second fill, 2 third fill and the remainder all barriques from 2019 and earlier--they may still have a little oak impact but not very much. We spent a week reconditioning and repairing all the neutral red barrels we had in the winery, with only one single barrel not making the cut because its leaks could not be fixed. The more delicate structure of the 2022 reds actually lends itself to a more balanced wine with less new oak overall.
Food Pairing Notes
Match to beef croquettes or try a fondue (using bouillion instead of oil or cheese to cook meat and vegetables), or lasagna: use slow-roasted tomatoes and peppers for the sauce!
Other Notes
Our 10.5 acre vineyard is over 50% Merlot, and we have two different clones, both identified in Bordeaux during the 1970s. The vines for both our Alluvia and Silica were planted together, across different soil types but sharing the same rows. The name "Silica" refers to the sandy soil in the section on the vineyard, which lends the wine distinct characters due to smaller berry size (increased tannin and concentration of flavour), elevated pH (due to more frequent drip irrigation). Using only 20% new oak and encouraging expression of the grapes, the result is a structured, deeply complex Merlot that can be enjoyed now, or hold for aging.