Cinder Wines | Snake River Valley, Idaho | Melanie Krause & Joe Schnerr

Wines in Production

A little about my winemaking style… I love to blend. Making wine on this small of a scale forced me to think about my blends from the very beginning of the process, selecting the vineyards I would buy fruit from. I studied the vineyards and the wines that have been made from them and put together blends in my mind long before the vines had emerged from winter. At this point I’m evaluating how my wines turned out, if they were what I expected, and how will I tweak them for next year? I used slightly different techniques on every lot of wine I made this year. This will help me define what styles I think work best for the vineyards and when blended, should give me interesting, layered wines.

Mel with "cinder" layer in Snake River Valley

2006 Syrah
The touch of Viognier that I co-fermented with this Syrah make the aromas so intense. It reminds me of a blueberry pie baking in the oven. The flavors are fruity with a little bit of mocha from the barrels and the finish has super smooth tannins. This Syrah is like a beautiful woman: fragrant, voluptuous and silky.

2007 Viognier
The wine shows my two favorite characteristics of Viognier, intense aromas with a round, mouth-filling texture. This is a dry wine and I used a mixture of fermentation methods (some stainless steel, some neutral oak) to create a good balance between the round texture of the wine and the lively acids on the finish. The aromas remind me of honeysuckle with warm peaches. The flavors repeat the aromas but with a hint of grapefruit and a finish that is long and clean.

2007 Rosé
This Rosé has lively fruit aromas, like watermelon and strawberry. The finish is so crisp and clean. Made mostly of Syrah from a vineyard over 3500 feet in elevation, this slow-ripening fruit achieves balance between fresh fruit aromas and crisp acidity. Pair this wine with salads during the first course of the meal or drink it all evening long when you’re barbequing this summer.