2004 Hedges Family Estate Single Vineyard Limited Merlot

Harvest Notes: Fairly consistent temperatures during bloom and set led to a nice, even set. A typically warm summer led into a late August early September ripening period of several days that were hot and dry followed by several cool days, causing sugar levels to spike up then drop to more “normal” levels. This pattern repeated itself, then changed to more typical extended fall ripening conditions of warm days and cool nights in later September. Our philosophy of picking at optimum flavor maturity caused us to ignore the higher brix early on and our patience was rewarded with later development of wonderfully concentrated ripe flavors that carried over into our wines. The wines tend to have higher alcohol but balanced acid and the Red Mountain terroir  provides intense flavor and aroma.