2006
Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir, Hyde Vineyard Carneros, Napa Valley
Winemaker's Notes
The 2006 is a stunning example of what the terroir of this first class vineyard has to offer, beginning with an intriguing nose of rhubarb and forest floor. The palate reveals great depth of flavor and complexity. Layers of plum, black cherry, cedar and black tea permeate the palate and give way to a long, graceful finish punctuated with subtle notes of mulled spices and oak. Alcohol 14.6%
2006 was slightly cooler overall than 2005 and began with delayed bud break due to an unusually long, wet spring. The weather warmed in May however, continuing through summer and into fall to provide the extended growing season needed for fruit to ripen fully.
Winemaking
• Hand-harvested grapes Fermented in small, open-top stainless steel fermentors with indigenous yeasts
• 5-day cold soak, 12 days total maceration
• Hand-punched cap
• Concurrent, spontaneous malolactic fermentation in barrels; 3½ months to completion
• Aged 11 months in French oak barrels: Francois Freres, Cadus, Remond, Damy, Alain Fouquet; 68% new
• Unblended, unfined and unfiltered; bottled August 2007
