Darioush, 2010 Viognier, Napa Valley

Estate grown Viognier derives its unique style from a four-acre vineyard site in the Oak Knoll appellation. The cool micro-climate of the vineyard allows this temperamental varietal to slowly develop robust and concentrated oral and fruit characteristics. The fruit, and resulting wine, is minimally handled to express its pure and fragrant nature.

Bright and alluring fragrances of macadamia nut, guava and honeysuckle introduce the distinctive 2010 Signature Viognier. A notable crisp green apple acidity pleases the palate while delightful flavors of Asian pear, star fruit and white nectarine harmonize with a nuanced nish accented by orange zest, clove and to ffee.

VINIFICATION
~ Meticulous attention to detail and minimal handling
~ Hand-harvested into small 28 lb. baskets
~ Hand-sorted and whole cluster pressed
~ Barrel fermented and aged 7 months sur-lie with bi-monthly batonage
~ Barrel lots racked prior to bottling

COMPOSITION 100% Viognier
APPELLATION Darioush Estate Vineyards, Ashley Vineyard, Oak Knoll
COOPERAGE Aged 7 months sur-lies in 15% new French oak, Burgundy cooperage
WINEMAKER Steve Devitt
AVAILABILITY 1499 cases

Proprietor Darioush Khaledi

Darioush Khaledi, a man passionate about fine wines founded Darioush in 1997. Khaledi grew up in Iran's Shiraz region, a wine-growing region until the Islamic revolution. His father made wine as a hobby, and as young boy, Khaledi used to sneak sips from the barrel. As an adult, he became a devoted collector of fine wines.

Immigrating to the United States in the late 1970's Khaledi's passion for wine never waned. In the early 1990's he embarked on a worldwide search for the ultimate vineyard estate. Darioush is the culmination of this search.

Winemaker Steve M. Devitt

Steve Devitt is Winemaker/Vineyard Manager of Darioush. Steve manages all winemaking and viticulture activities at Darioush. His understanding of microclimates, the local soils and the wines they produce enable him to create Estate wines that best express the character of each individual vineyard. As a winegrower, he believes that the best winemaking begins in the vineyards. Steve personally manages the Estate's extensive new vineyard developments and all aspects of the Estate's wine production.

The Darioush Estate is committed to hand harvesting and handsorting each grape cluster prior to crushing. This is a meticulous and labor-intensive method, but it ensures that only the finest, fully matured grapes are used in our Darioush wines. This approach includes small lot whole cluster pressing, destemming, cold soaking, extended maceration, barrel-to-barrel racking and bottling without filtration.

This minimalist approach preserves and expresses the true varietal character of Darioush Signature wines.

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