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Chateau O'Brien Wines
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2006 Limited Reserve Tannat
The 2006 vintage for red varietals was met by a defoliating frost in mid-October causing all the leaves to fall from the vines prior to the initiation of reds harvest. However, aggressive viticulture practices starting during May and June, combined with quality minded production philosophies, set the stage to yield truly ripe late red varietals.
At Chateau O’Brien, our harvest timing is based on the last parameter to ripen, typically balancing of acidity or softening of tannin. The earlier reds, such as Cabernet Franc and Merlot, were optimally timed for harvest when the frost set in. While, the Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat typically hang until late October or early November even in the best years. Due to fronts, the 2006 Tannot grape leave fell from the vine (in mid-October), and the fruit hung on the vines another two weeks before it was harvested.
Our 2006 Tannat Limited Reserve shows exquisite development of opulent fruit and smooth ripe tannin, as well as assertive acidity. While appropriately bottle aged prior to release, the 2006 Tannat Limited Reserve can be regarded as a truly age-worthy red wine. As such, when consumed young, optimal balance and appreciation is achieved with a gentle decanting providing delicate oxygenation for a period of several hours. These same characteristics of this wine (concentration, tannin, bold acidity) effectively ensure it to naturally reach optimum balance with 5 to 10 years of additional cellaring, while ensuring an expected longevity of 15 to 20 years.