Winemaking Philosophy

 The fruit we grow from our estate vineyard is our primary focus. We believe in utilizing minimal intervention winemaking techniques to insure that the unique qualities of the terroir of the vineyard are reflected in the color, structure, nose and taste of the wine without unnecessary manipulation. So, by closely managing the vineyards and harvesting based on phenolics, we minimize the need to make non-native additions in the winemaking process.

Close management of the winemaking process is also very important to us. The use of specific fermentation temperatures and cap management for each varietal is needed to create an environment in which the indigenous yeast can thrive and perform the right level of extraction. The use of a 24-hour fermentation management program is used, varying the temperature and cap management procedure on a 3-4 hour time basis during various stages of the fermentation process. This unique approach is very time intensive and costly, but insures the environment for the fermentation so that the wine develops the necessary color, extraction and structure without the use of external additives. To some, our 24-hour fermentation management program seems crazy, but, remember, yeast don’t sleep!

In finishing the wine, we believe in traditional oak barrel fermentation for almost all of our wines. Use of minimal oak treatments is common in our wines as Sol Rouge works with mountain fruit and gains tannins naturally from the skins of the grapes, not the barrels. Most wines age at least 16-24 months in barrel, with Bordeaux varietals remaining in barrel 30+ months total. French oak is used exclusively in at Sol Rouge to bring out a true “old world” quality within our wines.