‘Nutcracker’ is selected from Walnut Block’s most mineral-driven blocks that produce intensely flavored fruit. The fruit all hails from the original blocks, planted in 1996. The vines are specially trained in the Scott Henry divided canopy system, which allows excellent light penetration and air flow without removing any leaves. Organic principles are followed, ensuring healthy fruit growth in an eco-friendly environment, and the vineyard has been certified for nearly 15 years now.

The grapes were handpicked and then gently whole-bunch pressed to one-third old barrels as the rest was sent to stainless-steel. The barrel portion was fermented with ambient yeast while the the stainless-steel lots were fermented with a house cultured yeast strain. The barreled Sauvignon is really deep and complex and melds nicely with the more vivacious and lively stainless-steel wine. After three months in barrel on gross lees the wine is racked to tank for a fining and coarse filtration before bottling with a small addition of sulfur.