Rasa Vineyards

The 2009 Doctrina Perpetua is a single vineyard Syrah. The fruit comes from one of the best sites in Columbia Valley – Bacchus Vineyard.

Doctrina Perpetua means “Forever Learning.” Every vintage is a learning experience and you need to pay attention to what the vines are telling you. This was our first vintage working with this fruit and we really listened not only the vines but also to the vineyard manager Derek Way and General Manager Kent Waliser. Derek and Kent have been instrumental in giving us an understanding of their vineyards and the specific blocks from which we get fruit. And listening and being open-minded paid off. This wine is a beauty.

This inaugural version of Doctrina Perpetua celebrates Michel de Montaigne - philosopher, essayist, skepticist, humanist, and one of the most important writers during the Renaissance.

Winemaker Notes

A colossus of a wine that manages to retain a strong sense of finesse and elegance (think Lee Haney, 8 time Mr. Olympia, in an Armani tuxedo and you get the idea). Deep, opaque purple in color. The bouquet offers cassis, blueberry, black raspberry, earth, truffle, vanilla, and violet. Very full-bodied and highly intense focused flavors. The tannins are substantial yet silky. On the palate there are notes of cassis, mint, blueberry, black raspberry, coffee, dark chocolate, vanilla, minerals, and earth. The resonant, silky finish is delicious and seemingly endless. Properly cellared this wine will hit maturity in 8-10 years and will easily hold for another 10 years after that.

Technical details

The wine had a pre-fermentation maceration of 164 hours and a post-fermentation maceration of 78 hours. 75% Native fermentation. The wine was punched down by hand 3 times each day during macerations and fermentation.

All individual wine components, including free run and press fractions, were kept separate until final blending. The oak profile is 30% new French oak (predominantly from Troncais and Alliers) and 70% neutral French oak. The wine achieved its sparkly brilliance from 4 judicious rackings, no fining agents were employed. The wine was very lightly filtered to capture any remaining lees.

The alcohol is 15.8%, pH is 3.67, and the titratable acidity is 6.0 g/L. Harvest date: September 12, 2009.

Rand Sealey – Review of WA Wines

Opaque purplish colored, this offers a lovely nose of raspberry, blueberry, cassis, lavender, jasmine, attar of rose, violets and incense. The thick and velvety dark fruits are wrapped around a firm core, mixed with licorice, cocoa powder, French roast and mocha. The back turns thick and juicy, with notes of crème brulée, orange peel, and a cascade of blueberry juice, culminating in a satiny tannin finish. 19.5/20 points