Morlet Family Vineyards "Billet Doux" Late Harvest White 2014

Name: Morlet Family Vineyards "Billet Doux" Late Harvest White 2014
Price: 100.00 USD
Availability: InStoreOnly

$100.00

Morlet's answer to Sauternes, grown in Alexander Valley. Old vines on the gravelly bed of an ancient riverbed catch cool foggy mornings and hot afternoons, the exact recipe for botrytis, and in 2014 the noble rot delivered. The blend is 60% Sauvignon Blanc, 34% Semillon and 6% Muscat, night-picked by hand, barrel-fermented on native yeast and raised 18 months in French oak. Jeb Dunnuck gave it 97 points and set it beside the great Sauternes. Billet Doux means love note. Pour it that way.

Ripe quince, honeyed peach, toasted bread and exotic flowers. Rich and deep yet pure, with real lightness on the palate and a long, honeyed finish.

Creme brulee, blue cheese with walnuts, or tarte Tatin. Serve it cold, 43 to 45 degrees, and decant two hours ahead.

The vines are 25 to 65 years old, rooted in loamy, gravelly soils of an ancient riverbed in Alexander Valley, pruned to one cluster per shoot. Fruit is picked overripe with noble rot, at night, into small lugs and a refrigerated truck. Morlet projects a 50-year arc of aging.