Wirz Vineyard has a field blend of grapes that were planted here before 1900. The Carignane grapes for this wine are over 90 years old. River Run is a small winery, producing fewer than 2,000 cases of wine per year, operating out of Aromas on the border of Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties.Wirz Vineyard is situated at more than 1000 feet elevation above a valley floor which is moderated by coastal weather patterns. Located on the San Andreas Fault line, the vineyard is a mixture of granite and limestone soils, bringing ideal acid and pH values to this wine and allowing this unique vineyard - grown on its own rootstock.
Body: medium
Color: ruby red
Aromas: burst of red cherry, red licorice, red plum
From their website: Established in 1978, River Run Vintners is a family operated winery located at the Southern end of the Santa Cruz Mountains near the town of Aromas, California.
Tasting Notes: It is the southernmost winery of the Santa Cruz Mountains Wine -growers appellation. It sits on a macadamized berm that is Rogge Lane, in Aromas, a berm that quickly gives way to the rich alluvial fan that escorts the curvaceous, tree-packed Pajaro River. Typical of the tolerant “banana belt” microclimate, a chimoyra tree grows in the front yard of the winery. In the backyard, various “tropical” plants thrive, including bunches of the seductive, serpentine, iridescent-yellow stovepipe plant. Honeysuckle climbs up telephone cables and small finches suspend themselves upside down.
Eat with: cornmeal & goat cheese fritters, frisée, fuji apple & green onion salad, toasted walnuts & honey aioli.
