2023 Harvest Notes: A Rare Vintage Shaped by Patience

2023 was shaped by Ventura County's fifth-wettest year in more than a century, with a cold, foggy spring that delayed flowering into June and reduced yields across the vineyard. No white wine was produced this vintage. Mourvèdre thrived once warmer weather arrived in July, and naturally late-ripening clusters hung through October, concentrating as the canopy thinned. The result is two small-production, structure-forward wines: a 56-case Estate Syrah and a 94-case Estate Mourvèdre, both drawing strong critical scores.

2023 by the numbers

A Delayed Start: The Latest in Memory

Harvest began notably later than usual this year, the latest start in the estate's recent history. The delay traced back to an unusually rainy, cloudy spring that pushed flowering and fruit set back to June. The cool, wet conditions that month further reduced fruit set, resulting in lower yields than expected across the vineyard.

A Silver Lining: Concentrated Flavor

The natural thinning that came with these conditions carried an unexpected upside: the grapes that did develop, though fewer in number, were exceptionally flavorful. Mourvèdre in particular thrived once warmer weather arrived in July. Naturally late-ripening clusters hung on the vine through October, concentrating further as the canopy thinned, arriving at harvest small, lean, and intensely flavored.

Balancing Drought and Rainfall

A defining tension of the 2023 growing season was the balance between years of drought and an unusually wet year. The rain replenished soil moisture and laid a strong foundation for the growing cycle, but the excess also raised concerns about nutrient availability and vine health. The estate's elevation and the moderating influence of Pacific Ocean winds helped mitigate those risks, keeping the vines on track despite the unusual season.

No White Wine, and a Cool-Toned Vintage

Because of the delayed flowering and reduced yields, no Estate White was produced in 2023, the first vintage without one since the estate's founding. What did come through the cellar reflects the season: cool-toned, structure-driven wines shaped more by tension than ripeness.

The Wines

2023 Estate Syrah — 88% Syrah, 12% Grenache Blanc · 56 cases Harvested September 26, 2023. 13.1% alcohol. Elderflower, lavender, and bright red fruit on the nose; lingonberry, tart cherry, cracked pepper, and subtle graphite on the palate. The most open and aromatic Syrah the estate has made to date, with lower alcohol and softer tannins than prior vintages. Vinous, 94 points: "impressive textural polish," with blue-toned fruit, cedar, tobacco, and white truffle on the finish.

2023 Estate Mourvèdre — 77% Mourvèdre, 12% Grenache Blanc, 6% Picpoul, 5% Roussanne · 94 cases Harvested October 10, 2023. 13.6% alcohol. Wild strawberry, red cherry, pomegranate, and violets on the nose; raspberry, cracked pepper, red licorice, and crushed stone on the palate. Lighter and more aromatically lifted than the variety typically delivers. Wine Enthusiast, 95 points (Cellar Selection): "elegantly mineral-driven." Vinous, 93 points, describing it as living "somewhere between the Rhône and Beaujolais." Wine Advocate, 92 points.

A Year to Remember

The 2023 vintage is a testament to how much a single unusual season can reshape a vineyard's output, not just in quantity, but in character. What the estate lost in volume, it gained in intensity and definition: a small, cool-toned vintage built on tension rather than ripeness.