2005 Black-Chinned Syrah

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THE HUMMINGBIRD MANTRA: Hummingbirds have been a part of Clos LaChance lore since the first vintage in 1992. Vintner’s Bill and Brenda Murphy chose the hummingbird as the symbol for Clos LaChance Winery due to its territorial nature and ability to chase away the grape-eating birds from the vineyards. Each wine in the Hummingbird Series is named for a true species of Hummingbird—a species that we feel has similar characteristics to the varietal.Black-Chinned Hummingbirds have a wide range—from British Columbia all the way to Mexico. Both the male and the female are a dull metallic greenish/gray in color with a white belly. Nectar is the Hummingbird’s main source of food, due to its high sugar content that satisfies the birds’ high metabolism. Over 90 plants are on the menu; however, most recently artificial feeders supplement the Black-Chin’s normal diet.

WINEMAKING: The Syrah grapes were hand-harvested, handsorted and cold-soaked in closed-top stainless steel fermenters for 72 hours. After 24-hours, a small amount of the free-run juice was run off for Rosé production, resulting in a highly concentrated must. The Grenache was cold-soaked in open-top tanks for 48 hours. Inoculation was initiated in closed-top tanks. The must was inoculated and pumped over twice daily at the beginning and end of fermentation. Towards the peak of fermentation, winemaker Stephen Tebb chose to increase punch downs for both the Syrah and the Grenache to four times per day, therefore increasing color and intensity of flavors. Fermentation lasted an average 12-15 days, whereupon the new wine was drained and pressed to barrel. Barrel allocation consisted of 28% new French oak and 7% new American oak. The wine was aged for 16 months and was racked three times during that period.