Description

Schramsberg Brut Rose North Coast 2018

92 Pts – Wine Enthusiast

Lively, pure raspberry and red-cherry flavors infuse this elegant wine with life while a tangy balance and fine-grained bubbles make it refreshing and substantive on the palate. The red fruits carry through nicely to the finish.

92 pts – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

Medium cherry-pink in the glass, the 2018 Brut Rosé is scented of baked apples with tones of flint, mushrooms and toast. The palate is dry and energetic with a slightly foamy mousse, rounded acidity and a savory finish.

Well-balanced and refreshing, this dry wine blends mineral and chalk aspects with tasty raspberry flavors. It is a slightly restrained, elegant expression that will please many.– Wine Enthusast (September 2020)

Schramsberg Brut Rosé is fruitful, complex and dry, making it both versatile with food and delicious by itself as an apéritif. The character of the wine is most strongly influenced by bright, flavorful Pinot Noir grown along California’s North coast from southern Mendocino County to northern Marin County. A few small lots of Pinot Noir are fermented in contact with their skins to add depth and subtle color to this vibrant sparkling wine. Chardonnay gives spice, structure and length on the palate. Hand picking, careful handling and gentle pressing produce a wine of delicacy, aromatic purity and depth. Following the fall harvest and fermentation of the base wines, extensive tasting trials are carried out in the spring to create a polished blend reflective of the vintage. The finished blend undergoes a second fermentation in bottle before aging on its yeast lees for about two years, just enough to achieve refined effervescence and toastiness without diminishing its refreshing, vibrant appeal.
Enjoy this rich, delicious sparkler on almost any occasion: at your favorite restaurant, a special dinner at home, at a beach picnic or a backyard barbecue. A very versatile wine; try it with sushi, salmon, rock shrimp, roast chicken, BBQ ribs, caprese and Panzanella salads, red berry tarts, and an array of cheeses, charcuterie, nuts and fresh fruit.
The long growing season in 2018 revealed a vintage with concentration without being overripe. Despite a warm February, the growing season started off cooler than the past few vintages. A cool spring meant bloom lasted longer than usual, which resulted in a bountiful crop. Summer temperatures were moderate with fewer heat spikes than in recent years. Veraison started later
as well, and as a result, harvest started two to three weeks later than in recent years. The resulting fruit exhibited exceptional brightness and depth of flavor.

TASTING NOTES

The 2018 Brut Rosé has fruitful aromas of strawberry, cherry, watermelon, and orange, complemented by notes of rose petal, shortcake, cinnamon, and white peach. A crisp, bright entry leads way to a juicy fruitful center with bountiful flavors of nectarine, apricot, yellow apple and raspberry cobbler, and ends with a lingering finish.
– Winemakers Jessica Koga, Sean Thompson and Hugh Davies

Varietal Composition: 62% Pinot Noir, 38% Chardonnay
County Composition: 60% Sonoma, 17% Mendocino, 16% Napa, 7% Marin
Appellation: North Coast
Harvest Dates: August 22 – September 25, 2018
Barrel Fermentation: 23%
Alcohol: 12.6%
TA: 0.82 g/100 mL
pH: 3.19
RS: 1.0 g/100 mL
Release Date: July 1, 2021
Cases Produced: 19,320 (9-Liter)
Suggested Retail: $47 (750 mL)
Available Formats: 750 mL