Recanati Special Reserve ’06

 Recanati’s Special Reserve is the “baby” of Lewis Pasco, the winery’s winemaker. The making of this wine involves combining the best grapes at one’s disposal each year with the newest and best oak barrels, meticulous attention to the smallest detail and an enormous amount of love and patience. The result is a harmonious, rich and full-bodied wine with intense tannins and a balanced acidity that provides the wine with long-term aging potential. The wine’s bouquet is one of chocolate, sage and cloves with hints of coconut and eucalyptus that blend well with its ripe berry flavors, leading to a smooth and long-lasting finish. The Vineyard This wine was composed of two-thirds Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from two vineyards on Moshav Kerem Ben Zimra and one-third Merlot grapes from the vineyards in Kibbutz Manara, both in the Upper Galilee region. All three vineyards are located at an elevation of about 800 meters above sea level. The cool climate that prevails there and rocky well-drained soil are ideal for cultivating these noble varieties. -. Precise harvest times are jointly determined by the winery’s agronomist Dr. Pini Sarig and winemaker Lewis Pasco. Both experts traverse the vineyard row by row, tasting the grapes and ensuring their ripeness, concentration and readiness for harvesting. Production Upon arrival at the winery the grapes are destemmed and very gently crushed. They are then transferred to vats for two to three days of pre-fermentation cold-maceration. This process is very helpful in preserving the grape’s unique fruit flavors. After fermentation and pressing, the wine is transferred to new French oak barrels. For the first four months, the produce of the different vineyards is aged in separate barrels. A series of tastings is then held before deciding on the wine’s composition, the unique blend that will optimally utilize the best features of the growing region, the Upper Galilee. When the required blend has been achieved, the wine is returned to the barrels for completion of 18 months total, during which time it continues to mature and acquire additional complexity. Packed six per case