2020 Sylvanus Skins

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Sylvanus is a wine of place, a vin de terroir. Sylvanus is a wine made from white grapes that in the past we have produced as a still, modern, aromatic style and as a sparkling Methode Ancestrale (Pet-Nat) style. We now we have an ancient skin-fermented style or what is commonly referred to as an orange wine. This vineyard and the grapes grown there shine through in every style we have produced. We are thrilled to offer this celebratory skin-fermented version from the 2020 vintage. Lovers of past incarnations of Sylvanus will find much to adore in this version. Our 2020 Sylvanus Skins is a dry, aromatic, skin-fermented white wine. It is a field blend comprised of 46% Muscat, 29% Gewurztraminer, 20% Pinot Grigio and 5% Pinot Bianco all grown together, harvested together and fermented together. Sylvanus is not only the name of the wine, but also the name of the vineyard and the legendary Green Man who this vineyard and wine honor. In creating a field blend as opposed to blending different wine lots together, we are capturing the essence of our time and place as expressed by the Sylvanus vineyard. All of the fruit was hand-harvested, whole cluster-pressed, co-fermented on their skins in one-ton bins for 16 days until dry. The wine was matured in older oak barrels for eight months and bottled at the beginning of June 2021. Our 2020 Sylvanus Skins is a deep golden/tangerine color and possesses a clean, pronounced absurdly aromatic personality. The wine is medium-bodied, has moderate alcohol and juicy acidity. The flavors and aromas burst from the glass and on your palate and include apricots, tangerines, grapefruit and quince along with minerals and flowers like honeysuckle, magnolia and nasturtium. Our Sylvanus is juicy, tangy and alive with a long gratifying almost spicy and saline finish. This is a delicious skin-fermented wine and will pair well with a wide variety of food such as local scallops or striped bass, stuffed squash blossoms, a plethora of cheeses, oysters and clams (or a clam pie!), bucatini carbonara, pork and veal, lightly spiced Indian food, sushi and charcuterie. There is a lovely inter-play between the aromas, flavors and textures. There are ethereal qualities to this wine and its satisfying ripeness, pronounced aromatics and swelling textures encompass the paradoxical quality of aromatic lift, lightness and fleshy weight. Sylvanus Skins is super fly. 208 cases produced.