Our philosophy is that wine is about pure enjoyment — sitting around with friends and family, relaxing, and making the most of every day. At Bink Wines, we dream big, act on our dreams, and love life. We hope you’ll drink Bink Wines in good health and find the time to celebrate life every day.

Great wines start in the vineyard. Cindy Paulson works with viticulturist Tyler Klick of Redwood Empire Vineyard Management to make all of the winegrowing decisions at Hawks Butte Vineyard and to ensure that we produce only the best quality grapes. We nurture and tend our hillside vineyard mostly by hand, applying sustainable, organic practices wherever possible to coax the best out of the vines and support a healthy environment.

Deb Schatzlein, practices hands-on, low impact winemaking. She starts with grapes that are picked at the peak of ripeness, based on brix and flavor, to ensure fresh, well-rounded character. She works with small lots, fermenting the grapes in half-ton bins and punching the cap down by hand twice daily, to gently extract the best flavor and color from the grapes and to ensure supple, smooth tannins. Small lots also allow Deb to work with different yeasts to add complex layers to the finished wines. Once fermentation is complete, Deb places the wine in a variety of artisan French oak barrels for 18 months or longer to add complexity during aging. Our exceptional fruit and handcrafted winemaking produce wines that are multi-layered and rich, deep ink colored, with smooth, supple tannins, spicy fruit flavors and long, elegant finishes.

2006 Randle Hill Sauvignon Blanc
Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino County
Fresh aromas of honeysuckle, comice pear and mango with flavors of grapefruit and an underlying minerality. $20/bottle

A total of 4.9 tons of Sauvignon Blanc was harvested at 23.5 degrees Brix on September 23rd 2006. We transferred the whole fruit into a bladder-type press, pressed the juice into a stainless steel tank and cold-soaked for 48 hours. At the end of 48 hours we racked the juice off the solids and adjusted the tank temperature to 50 degrees F. When the juice came up to temperature we inoculated with VL3, a commercial yeast developed specifically for Sauvignon Blanc. Primary fermentation lasted for 21 days. When primary fermentation was complete we adjusted the temperature back down to 32 degrees F for storage.

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2004 Weir Vineyard Pinot Noir
Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino County
A mouth full of juicy black cherries in summer, with aromas of raspberries and violets wafting over the back fence. Vanilla bean, sweet toast, and a touch of anise compliment the fruit. Smooth, supple tannins round out the lingering finish. $40/bottle

The grapes were harvested on September 8, 2004, and yielded just 2 tons per acre from this essentially dry-farmed hillside vineyard. The finished wine is a blend of 3 clones. The predominant one is rumored to be a “suitcase” clone from the Domaine Romanee-Conti Vineyard, and the balance consisting of both Pommard and Wadensville 2A.

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2003 Hawks Butte Merlot
Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino County
Deep garnet. Aromas of leather and lavender, with a dusting of spice. Easy drinking black cherry and caramel, with a hint of Bink’s favorite – catnip mint. Soft tannins linger through the finish. $35/bottle

We crushed the Merlot into 1/2 ton bins and cold soaked for 48 hours. After the must warmed to 50 degrees F, the bins were inoculated with BM45 cultured yeast. Primary fermentation lasted for ten days, when we pressed the must into a small stainless steel tank. The wine was innoculated with Oennococcus Oeni cultures to start the secondary malolactic fermentation.

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2003 Hawks Butte Syrah
Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino County
Iridescent purple. Rich aromas of violets, fresh berries, and roasted meat. A balanced mouthful of blackberry, plum and vanilla, with a hint of allspice. Silky, smooth tannins round out the lasting finish. $40/bottle

The grapes were harvested on October 5, 2003, and yielded just 2 tons per acre from this young vineyard. The small crop was due to the young age of the vines and the difficult growing conditions on this hillside vineyard. The grape clusters were long and gracious and produced just 160 gallons of grape juice per ton of grapes, providing plenty of concentrated flavors in the finished wine.

For more details...Winemaker Notes

2003
Hawks Butte Syrah
Winemaker Notes