The Tasting Panel magazine

October 2012

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Blanc Canvas T he fl oral aromas are heavenly. Night jasmine wafts out of the glass and with the fi rst sip, a creaminess washes across the palate, uplifting a stream of white peach, grapefruit and honeydew. A top note of minerality is con- stant. The 2011 Galerie "Naissance" Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc has arrived. "This is the fi rst wine I made by myself," announces Laura Díaz Muñoz. "I have been working with Chris Carpenter [the highly acclaimed winemaker for Cardinale, Lokoya, La Jota and Mt. Brave], making big, red mountain wines for fi ve years; this is a nice change. I want to make wine that is alive, always changing," she says. Earning a master of science in viticulture and enology from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, she began her winemaking journey at Finca Otero in La Mancha and then made stops in New Zealand at Isabel Estate Vine yards in Marlborough and the Calina Winery in Talca, Chile, before arriving in Napa. "I loved having the freedom to start this project from scratch." Born to Shine The 2011 Galerie "Naissance" Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc (SRP $30 ) marks the beginning of an art-meets-science collec tion of wines. Releasing this fall is Laura Díaz Muñoz's 2012 Knight's Valley Sauvignon Blanc. A Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and a Knight's Valley Cabernet Sauvignon will be released in 2014. Galerie Winemaker Laura Díaz Muñoz. Facts: ◗ Naissance 2011 is aged in neutral French oak barrels, 50% in stainless steel tanks. ◗ The lees are stirred three times per week in bar rel and two times per week in tank to develop a complex mouthfeel. ◗ Díaz Muñoz utilizes 50% whole cluster fermentation. ◗ Two Loire Valley clones are used in combination with a California clone. ◗ Alcohol is 13.5%. ◗ "I understand the Napa Valley," says Díaz Muñoz, "but my style is Old World. I just happen to use some New World techniques." GALERIE IS ONE WINEMAKER'S MASTERPIECE COLLECTION, BUT IT'S NOT JUST ART FOR WINE'S SAKE 46 / the tasting panel / october 2012

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