2012 Matthiasson Napa Valley Red California, USA Tenuta Grillo and total macerations can exceed

and total macerations can exceed a month

meticulous work is done in the vineyard to obtain the healthiest grapes

the age of these vines was from 13 to18 years at the time of harvest

From 70-year-old vines planted in blue marl

and raised in a combination of large cement tanks

2012 Matthiasson Napa Valley Red California, USA Tenuta Grillo and total macerations can exceedThe Red Hen Merlot Vineyard, along Dry Creek, at the very top of the creeks alluvial fan, is a warm site withvery light and thin soils, composed of a foot of silty loam sitting on top of at least 20 feet of pure cobble. The vines are naturally small berried and early ripening. The stress results in extremely low yields, barely making over a ton per acre of intense and concentrated fruit. In the 1950s through the 1970s, this block produced the top