2017 Two Acres

There are plenty of highlights in these 2017s from Carlisle. Mike Officer comments that the experiences of 2010 were quite instrumental in shaping many of his choices in 2017, including dealing with the risks of potentially unripe phenolics, wines with both high acid and high alcohol, and severe dehydration of fruit on the vine. To be sure, Zinfandel is the variety that struggled most with the heat spikes of 2017. Losses of 40-50% were not uncommon, both because of dehydration and the severe selection that was required to ferment only clean fruit. In some cases, drastically lower Zinfandel yields also resulted in slightly different blends. In tasting, though, the wines are universally strong, which is a testament to the total commitment to quality here. I tasted all of the 2017s from barrel just prior to bottling.