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2021 Messer

70% Malbec, 30% Cab Franc

90 Points - Wine Spectator
"Dense and succulent, offering wild blackberry, espresso and tobacco flavors up front on a thick frame, with hints of bittersweet chocolate, sage and rosemary that linger on the long finish alongside notes of black pepper. Malbec and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2036. 543 cases made." MaryAnn Worobiec, Senior Editor, Napa Bureau Chief

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One of the most surprising aspects of the Calcareous Vineyard has been it’s ability to successfully produce a wide range of varietals. Our Estate Malbec and Cabernet Franc have always been cellar favorites, and blending the two produces a genuinely stunning expression of our site. The name Messer is in honor of our founders Lloyd and Dana, who’s family name means sword in German.

Tasting Notes
Dark, inky purple in the glass while exuding classic Malbec notes of plum, leather and slight hints of cocoa. Velvety smooth upfront on the palate with juicy flavors of blackberry, cherry and slight hints of Cab Franc menthol. The mid-palate only gains in richness with perfectly round tannins and subtle oak complementing each other. Elegant acidity prevents the finish from being cloying, allowing this overall rich, weighty wine to still be a perfect food pairer.

Taste with Winemaker Jason Joyce

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$80.00
/ 750ml Bottle
SKU: 2021MESSER

Wine Story

Vineyard Notes
The 2021 Messer comes from Estate block 3 and 5. These are as close to "flat" as our property gets, offering richer topsoil than our chalkier blocks. This gives a bit more nutrients for vigorous growth and ample canopy to ripen these thick skinned and richly tannic Bordeaux varietals. The 2021 vintage was my favorite vintage since 2007. The wines nearly made themselves as most of the usual stresses and pressures you feel during harvest such as ripeness window, tank capacity, extreme temperature events, were completely absent. In their place was mild, long lasting windows of perfect ripeness allowing full, relaxed creative freedom to make the best possible wines you can.
Winemaker Notes
The Cab Franc and Malbec were picked the same day, thus processed and blended together for this wine. Hand picked clusters were destemmed without crushing and transferred to 4.5 ton open top concrete tanks. A mix of pump over and delestage gently extracted the juice from the berries and the lots were pressed after 14 days on skins. The combined free run and press wine was allowed to settle for 48 hours then transferred to 40% new French oak barrels for 20 months of aging.
Production
543 Cases
Food Pairing Notes
I am a big proponent of Malbec on the Central Coast of California, as it not only produces a beautiful wine, the vine itself thrives here. It simply belongs here. And to drive that point home even more is how perfectly this wine pairs with our un-official "official" regional food, the Santa Maria Grilled Tri-Tip sandwich. A true Central Coast Tri-Tip Sandwich only has 3 elements. The open oak fire Grilled Tri-Tip steak, toasted sourdough loaf with ample butter, and a simple fresh Pico De Gallo. Those three together, like peanut butter and jelly, form a culinary endpoint that no further addition can improve. This is the perfect wine for that sandwich
Other Notes
70% Malbec, 30% Cab Franc

The Specifics

Wine Specs
Vintage
2021
Varietal
70% Malbec, 30% Cab Franc
Appellation
Paso Robles
Vineyard Designation
Calcareous Vineyard
Harvest Date
9/13/21
Sugar
24.6 Brix
pH
3.42
Aging
20 Months
Residual Sugar
Dry
Alcohol %
15.5

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California Proposition 65 Warning

WARNING: Drinking distilled spirits, beer, coolers, wine and other alcoholic beverages may increase cancer risk, and, during pregnancy, can cause birth defects. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/alcohol.

WARNING: The packaging on this product can expose you to chemicals including Bisphenol A (BPA), which are known to the State of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/alcohol.

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