2023 Syrah
Notebook: We will let you know in a little bit, when it has some bottle-age and is ready to be released.
Vineyard: 100% Sawmill Creek Vineyards
Harvest Date: October 10
Fermentation: Hand-picked and fermented in open-top bins with 15% whole cluster inclusion. Half of the bins were fermented with ambient yeast. The wine was pressed after 14 days on the skins.
Aging: The wine spent 9 months in neutral French oak barrels before being racked and blended with Cabernet Sauvignon. Lightly filtered and bottled on August 14, 2024.
Blend: 95% Syrah - 5% Cabernet Sauvignon
ABV 13.1%
Cases Produced 254
Syrah
'The Governor's Block'
Clone 877
Lansing gravel silt loam, 15%-25% slope.
Planted in 2003.
Sawmill Creek Vineyards in Hector, NY is located along the southeast corner of Seneca Lake. Its steep-sided, southwest facing vineyards are widely recognized as among the best in the Finger Lakes. We thank the Hazlitt family for their dedication to sustainable farming and passion for wine growing.
Vinny Aliperti started his wine journey making wine as a teenager with his relatives, never considering it would one day become his profession. After graduating college with a liberal arts degree and a stint in the Peace Corps, an opportunity to pursue commercial winemaking on his native Long Island was presented and he never looked back. From 1997 through 1999, Vinny apprenticed under winemaker Roman Roth at Wolffer Estate, producing mostly Chardonnay and Merlot at its state-of -the -art facility.
In early 2000, Vinny moved his family to the Finger Lakes to work at the legendary Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard, where he was first exposed to Riesling production. In 2001, Vinny joined the startup Atwater Estate Vineyards, where he continues today heading up winemaking operations for over 15 varieties. Its 8000 case facility produces estate grown wines, including multiple Rieslings, Gewurztraminer, Blaufränkisch and Cabernet Franc.
With Atwater's blessing, Vinny and his wife, Kim, started their own label, Billsboro Winery, in Geneva, NY in 2007. Sourcing grapes from Sawmill Creek Vineyards on Seneca Lake, Billsboro specializes in producing small lots dry vinifera wines, including Sauvignon Blanc, Albariño, Syrah, and Pinot Noir.
