Tamarack Firehouse Red 2012 is made from 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Syrah, 22% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec, 3% Sangiovese, 2% Grenache, 2% Cinsault, 1% Petit Verdot, 1% Mourvedre, 1% Carmenere and 1% Counoise.
Winemaking: The wine is on 40% new oak, mostly French and American oak barrels with a compliment of Hungarian oak barrels for 16 months.
Crushed gently and dropped by gravity into small 1.5 ton bins, cold soaked a minimum of 48 hours, then inoculated with a variety of yeasts, hand-punched and pressed directly to barrel, where the wine finishes both primary and secondary fermentation.Only after one year in barrel do the individual lots of wine that compose the Firehouse Red get blended.
Vintage: After two consecutive years of cooler vintages, normal harvest conditions were prevalent in 2012. Hot days, cool nights and plentiful sun stuck around all summer and throughout harvest. This weather allowed for leisurely ripening which permitted long hang times producing balanced and elegant wines.
Tasting Notes: Deceptively sweet aromas of strawberries, raspberries and rose petals. The flavors are dark, rich, lusciously mouthwatering, with cherries, boysenberries, tart plum skins, hints of leather, sweet pipe tobacco, and coffee beans. The tannins are firm, but not a bit edgy and the finish lingers with just a touch of anise. A truly lovely vintage.