“Playful, fruity, and so versatile! A fun spin on a traditional Southern Rhone-style blend, Crow’s has a kiss of tempranillo in lieu of mourvedre, to give the lifted wine a bit more grit.”
– Sam Smith, Winemaker
WINEMAKER NOTES
Cotes du Crow’s is our unique blend of the two noble, predominant red varietals of France’s southern Rhone Valley: Grenache and Syrah. This year we decided again to include a small amount of Tempranillo – its spice and earth tones are a beautiful complement to Grenache and Syrah.
The wine was fermented in open top tanks and received manual punch-downs. This enabled good extraction and structure development with pleasant tannins. After fermentation, the wine was transferred to French oak barrels (7% new), giving subtle spice and vanilla characters without overpowering the elegant fruit profile. Its weight and balance make it a perfect pairing with anything off the grill.
FLAVORS
TASTE PROFILE
ABOUT MORGAN WINERY
Conscientious, innovative farming regimens allied with traditional, “minimalist” winemaking techniques craft wines of balance, elegance and distinction. For Morgan Winery, this single-minded focus has produced a record of consistent, category leading, award winning wines.
Founder Dan Morgan Lee’s goal is to produce wines that are “true” – true to the variety and vineyard source and show true balance and complexity, while being enjoyable upon release. Morgan delivers consistency from bottle to bottle, vintage to vintage by nurturing sustainable, long-term relationships with their own vineyard and cellar crews, top-notch growers, and the finest French barrel coopers.
ABOUT SAM SMITH
Sam Smith was captivated by vineyards from a very young age, spending many weekends cycling on California’s Central Coast with his father. Sam attended UC Santa Barbara and studied French, Spanish, and Economics, for an intended career in international business. A desire for wine knowledge and proximity to good surf led him to a semester in Bordeaux, quickly changing his focus from business to wine. A tour and tasting at Château Lynch–Bages, followed by an epiphanous pairing of confit de canard and ’89 Margaux solidified his future direction and passion.
Upon return to California, Sam jumped head first into the wine industry, working harvests in Santa Barbara, Australia, the Willamette Valley, and the Northern Rhône. His three years as assistant winemaker at Margerum Wine Company were bookended by experiences with Pinot Noir in Oregon and cool-climate Syrah at Domaine François Villard. Though hecompleted the UC Davis Extension winemaking program, it’s Sam’s international experience and desire to make cool- climate wines that pair well with food that guide his style. His goal of unmanipulated elegance and balance is a perfect fitwith Morgan’s dedication to organic winegrowing and its SLH-focused portfolio of wines.