Petit Verdot
Petit Verdot is a lesser known variety yet is widely planted and most often used for blending. It originates from Bordeaux where it is used to blend in with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
It is literally "little green one" as it throws many berries which don't go through veraison in Bordeaux yet in good years in Pemberton we find it grows very well, goes through veraison and ripens to produce small intensely flavoured berries.
The wine is made with pumpovers to extract the colour, flavours and tannins from the skins. Once the wine has fermented to dryness, the second malo-lactic fermentation occurs in oak and the wine rests there for 10-12 months prior to bottling.
A full bodied red wine with a long life, it matches well to dishes such as osso bucco or lamb ragu with pasta.