2019 Olivia Brion "Mon Amour Interdit" Grenache
2019 Olivia Brion "Mon Amour Interdit" Grenache
- 100% Grenache - beautiful as a chilled red
- Single Vineyard, Shake Ridge Ranch, Amador County
- 13.4% Alcohol
- 110 cases produced
91pts Wine Enthusiast
Winemake'r’s Notes - Kira Ballotta
A perfect chilled red - this has been a dream of mine for quite some time. I don’t enjoy the bitterness often found in ice cold red wines. I want the wine to be plush and zesty and easy to drink but with distinctive aromas like my favorite whites. This wine is dedicated to that dream. It is soft on the palate but not devoid of intensity. It tastes just as good straight out of the cold box as it does when it warms gently in your hands.
Beautiful aromas greet the nose out of the glass, suggesting raspberry, wild strawberry, damp forest floor, mushroom earthiness and a hint of toasted wood. This lighter-bodied red wine has well-integrated, fine-grained tannins that add textural structure without overwhelming the delicate fruits. The palate confirms the nose but opens to further notes of fresh and dried black fig, fennel fronds and tarragon. Overall, the wine is delicate, nuanced and well balanced. JIM GORDON, Wine Enthusiast, 91pts
Shake Ridge Ranch Vineyard
Shake Ridge Ranch, Amador County
Two blocks of Shake Ridge Ranch were used in this wine. One is a gnarly head trained block that ripens a bit late, taking it’s sweet time. The other is a dramatically sloped block that picks up a variety of flavors at each elevation. They blend beautifully together to create complexity in this supple wine.
Olivia’s Inspiration
This wine is an homage to Aida de Acosta, a Caban American, who in 1903 became the first woman to fly a motorized aircraft. This was 6mo before the Wright Brothers took to the skies. She was 19 at the time and had 3 days of lessons. She flew dirigble No. 9 from Paris to the polo field at Chateau de Bagatelle, while the owner, Alberto Santos-Dumont, rode his bicycle along below, waving his arms and shouting advice. She stayed to watch the match between the British and Americans then flew back to Paris. She would keep her solo flight secret for 30 years as she came from a society family that would have considered her adventure uncouth.
She divulged the story 30 years later to her then husband. Meanwhile, Alberto Santos Dumont kept a photo of Aida on his desk next to a vase of flowers for the rest of his life. This wine is dedicated that the unrequited love and thusly name My Forbidden Lover (Mon Amour Interdit).
Later in life Aida lost sight in one eye and went on to raise $3 million in funds to establish the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Aida de Acosta - first woman in motorized flight.