Birichino Little Big Block Very Old Vine Mourvedre 2022

This remains excellent in terms of value and a full throated expression of Mourvedre. The nose opens with deep plum, cocoa nib, black cherry, a bit of spice, and some earth notes. The palate is full bodied with moderate acid and a flavor set of full black cherry and plum nicely balanced by cocoa nib and earth notes. (13.5% ABV) - D&M TASTING NOTES

PRODUCER NOTES:

VINEYARD: “Beginning in 2019, we have sourced old vine Mourvèdre from a “new,” very old vineyard planted c.1895, immediately adjacent to Evangelho Vineyard (in Contra Costa County). These head-trained, dry-farmed vines planted in pure, deep sand, needn’t default to the conventional template of rusticity: tannic and often forbiddingly concentrated by the bayonet of saignée. Indeed, they’re ideal for a wine altogether different."

PRODUCTION:  "Whereas mourvèdre harvests in Bandol and San Benito typically extend well into October, this pre-dawn pick in 2022 was relatively typical for Contra Costa, in mid-August. The wine was aged in neutral oaks for ten months and bottled without fining or filtration.”

TASTING: “Elegant, darkly aromatic, supremely persistent, buoyant and soignée….a darker, more exotically pungent wine than that relied upon for previous vintages, suggesting black fruits, hothouse flowers and the subtle yet undeniable fragrance of marzipan found in many of Contra Costa’s best bottles.”