2003 Limited Late Harvest

Purchase 2003 Limited Late Harvest

Harvest Date: October 30

Varietal Composition: 89 percent Semillon; 11 percent Sauvignon Blanc

Appellation: Napa Valley

Vineyards: 89 percent Yountville Ranch Church Block; 10 percent Yountville Ranch; 1 percent selected vineyards

Bottling Date: March 2005

For late-harvest wines, the season really begins after all the other grapes have been picked. At that point, Semillon, the principal variety of the blend, might have 20° or 21° of sugar, low acid, and bland flavors. But if the weather cooperates, as it did in 2003, this humble grape can turn into something sublime. Over the next month to six weeks, if there are alternating periods of moisture and dry conditions, spores of the noble rot, botrytis cinerea, begin to grow and perforate the thin skin of Semillon grapes, shrinking the berries, concentrating the sugar and acid within and covering the clusters with pinkish-grey mold. That’s just what happened in October of 2003.

Slow, careful hand-harvesting of botrytis-affected clusters took place at the end of October, with all hands on deck. Crews, including administrative and sales personnel from the winery, first passed through the vineyard removing any clusters or berries with sour rot or undesirable molds, such as penicillium or aspergillis. Then we took a second pass, carefully picking clusters affected by the noble rot, their berries turned soft, deliciously sweet, and spicy. The yield was exceedingly small. Then the fruit was very gently pressed and settled until the juice was a beautiful golden color, and then fermented in brand-new barrels and aged for nearly a year and a half. As you will see, a magnificent transformation took place during that time.

Alcohol, 13.8 percent; titratable acidity, 6.5 grams per liter; pH, 3.82; volatile acidity 0.91 grams per liter; harvest sugar 34.5° Brix; residual sugar, 10.0 percent.

Youthful lemony yellow, tinged with gold. Honeycomb and apricot botrytis notes leap out of the glass before your nose touches the rim; clean and classically minerally, very perfumy, with hints of citrus blossom. Smooth, delightfully sweet and mouthfilling, with pebbly texture; acidity brightens the taste just before a warm finish; the palate is cleansed by a trace of roasted almond and a kiss of new-barrel vanilla. When most local attempts at a true Sauternes-style wine turn out cloying, dark wines that taste like raisins (or worse), Silverado’s Limited Late Harvest can stand up to the world.

Purchase 2003 Limited Late Harvest