Current Release:
Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon
Obsidian Ridge Syrah 2006
Release Window: OPEN
Upcoming release:
Kazmer & Blaise Pinot Noir 2006
Kazmer & Blaise Chardonnay 2006
Fall 2008
Upon release, first crack at the wines is given to those on the mailing list.
Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 2005: 93 points, Wine News Magazine
Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 2005: 90 points, Anthony Dias Blue for The Tasting Panel Magazine
Molnar Family Chardonnay 2005: 91 points, Editor's Choice, Wine Enthusiast
Molnar Family Pinot Noir 2005: Gold Medal – 2007 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
Molnar Family Chardonnay 2005: Top 15 Carneros Chardonnays – San Francisco Chronicle
Kazmer & Blaise Pinot Noir: “The generous red fruit offers a texture as round as a Gevrey, the deep color and spiciness foretelling strong development to come” 91 pts Wine & Spirits.
Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 2004: Gold Medal – 2007 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 2002: 90 points, Wine Enthusiast
Obsidian Ridge: “These are the best high-impact wines I’ve tasted for this price in quite some time.” – Daniel Dawson, Back Room Wines, Napa, CA
2006 Molnar Family Chardonnay
1,505 cases produced
14.9% alcohol
3.42 pH
6.2 g/L titratable acidity
We harvested slightly earlier than usual as ripe flavors emerged in a timely fashion. Unlike the prior vintage in which a third of the juice was tank-fermented to give an added freshness to the wine, we chose to barrel-ferment this vintage in its entirety. One-third of the barrels were new, and predominantly heavy toast. We have recognized an unexpected result of barrel fermenting in our heavy toast barrels; rather than developing the expected aroma of charred wood, the wine has more nuanced spice and less simplistic vanilla. Our Kadar barrels from the Tokaj forest of Hungary are slow to release their flavor, and we appreciate the apparent restraint that even 100% barrel fermentation affords the wine.
Also of interest with the 2006 vintage was the prolonged malolactic fermentation. We allowed all the barrels to go through this secondary fermentation, but none were in a hurry to accomplish the task. For 6 months we stirred the barrels in gentle encouragement, and by spring the following year the wines had completed the transformation. After 9 months in barrel, the wine was aged in bottle for an additional 9 months which has allowed the flavors to knit together delightfully.
At release, the wine is generous and embracing with the white flower aromas of tuberose and jasmine, citrus peel, and the familiar smell of baguette, with deeper complexity relating to meat, butter and roasted nuts. The wine has an oily weight that speaks of the malolactic fermentation but also the less-stirring during barrel-aging. An excellent wine to pair with Dungeness crab or lobster, as the sweetness of the shellfish will be met by the richness of the wine.
Michael Blaise Terrien, Winemaker
Click here to download the complete 2006 fact sheet