2023 Scriptorium Riesling

Case Count: 726

Philosophy
Prior to the printing press, books and manuscripts were copied by hand. Much of the world’s great written works were destroyed throughout history, but some survived in the monasteries, where monks would both tend to grapes and copy manuscripts in great rooms called Scriptoriums. This monastic movement gave the wine industry the knowledge we have today, and reflects the intrinsic duality of tradition and modernity in winemaking. Riesling is considered a premier white winemaking grape worldwide. First planted on Old Mission Peninsula in 1974 by our Winemaker’s father, Ed O’Keefe, it is also the preeminent white wine grown on OMP. At Mari, our style tends to be drier, relying on extended lees contact and balancing residual sugar with an electric acidity—in true Germanic tradition.

Flavor Notes
Lively aromas of freshly squeezed lemon, pineapple, and papaya with deeper undertones of crème brûlée. Kept on its lees to surround and soften the acid structure, Scriptorium shows our textually focused house-style. Pleasingly off-dry, or the German equivalent halbtrocken, this main release Riesling balances natural sugar against traditional variety acidity, giving a wonderful sense of juicy fruit.

Vinification
Harvested on October 13th, 2023 from our northernmost vineyard, Irish, and on both October 17th and 23rd from our southernmost vineyard, Jamieson. The different harvests were fermented separately in stainless steel tanks and blended together on December 18th with a portion transferred to one 1200L Stück. The finished wine was all blended together on April 1st, 2024; filtered and bottled on April 29th.

Food Pairings
Summertime seafood dishes like ceviche and paella. Buttery shrimp fettuccine. Prosciutto wrapped melon. Pineapple upside down cake. Apple Pie.

Cellaring
Ideal through 2036, and will evolve in flavor as it ages.