2024 Napa Valley Albariño

The 2024 Hill Family Estate Albariño comes from the Stewart Ranch in the south Napa Estuary, and the Dunlap Vineyard off Los Carneros Avenue. 2024 had plenty of rain, saturated soil profiles and normal bud break in late March, but after a little cold weather, the season got warm and stayed hot to warm, bringing another early start to harvest. The Albariño came in August 27 and September 5 in great shape at 21.5 Brix. Esprit, one of the new “sleeping beauty” yeasts was used, and the juice was fermented in stainless steel tanks. After dryness, the wine was racked to stainless steel tanks to rest until bottling in December. Albariño, with its low alcohol and bright floral nose and citrus notes is what we all want to grab at the end of the day, as they do in Portugal and Spain where it is believed to be a native grape variety. Sweet aromatics with hints of Jasmine, orange blossom and savory lemon cookie. The first sip offers bright acidity, juicy citrus and sweet Meyer lemon rind. Complex flavors of ruby red grapefruit and quince float on a layer of minerality. The juicy core evolves into a medley of lush, satiny yellow plum notes with a dash of refreshing citrus. The mouthwatering finish lingers leaving one wanting another sip.