2020 Mission “Hernan”
Somers Vineyard
Mokelumne River
Alc: 15.5%

CASES:
54

BACKGROUND:
Mission, our signature grape, was brought to the New World by the conquistadores. The oldest grape in California, it has been mistreated and neglected for over a century. Today it’s a very rare grape, almost fully replaced by more fashionable varieties. But there would be no wine in California had it not paved the way for all the others, so I’m eternally grateful I get to be part of its new dawn. I’m obsessed with this variety and hopefully you’ll agree it makes a great wine.

STYLE:
For this rendition I wanted to make a bigger and bolder version of this variety. Harvested much later into ripeness, this wine spent four extra months on the skins in big clay Amphoras to add complexity, and finally transferred to partial new oak to add mouthfeel and roundness. The longer skin contact added complexities, more integrated tannins and structure, but still with those characteristic red fruit notes the grape has. This is the louder, slightly eccentric cousin to my other Mission in many ways. I love how it came out.

As with all my wines, Hernan is naturally fermented and made with minimal intervention and maximum passion.

VINEYARD:
Somers Vineyard might have some of the oldest Mission vines in the US. Nobody knows exactly how old they are, but our best guess is turn of the century. That would be the last century, not this one. Some say less, but for sure they’re at least 50+ years old. They grow right next to the river in the Mokelumne River AVA, Lodi, California and are mostly dry farmed, since their roots reach deep.

SHIP TO:
CA, NY, OR, OH, WA, CO, NV, AZ, TX, DC, FL, IL, PA, NC, MI, MD, VA, NH, OK, MA, MN, CT, GA, AL, AK (shipping not included to AK, please contact me for shipping quote).

SHIPPING INCLUDED FOR ALL ORDERS OVER $250.

MUST BE OVER 21 TO ORDER.

SHIPS NOW.