# Close Haul Red Blend (2023)

- **Producer:** Slow Dance Wines
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc
- **Region:** California, United States
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 13.2%
- **Average price:** €26
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** No
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 14–16 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** plum, raspberry, rose, white pepper, chocolate

## About this wine

Slow Dance is a boutique California natural wine project founded in 2018 by Graham Shelton in Richmond, California. The Close Haul Red Blend pays homage to classic, pre-industrial California Clarets, capturing the rustic and fresh personality of historic Napa Valley and Mendocino County terroirs before modern commercial styles favored heavy extraction and dense oak integration.

## Interesting facts

- Slow Dance was founded in 2018 by Graham Shelton in Richmond, California, focusing on traditional, low-intervention claret styles.
- The name Close Haul references sailing upwind, reflecting the wine's fresh, buoyant nature inspired by historic California red blends.
- This wine is fermented with native yeasts, aged in neutral oak barriques, and bottled unfiltered with zero added sulfur.

## Food pairing

The bright natural acidity and supple, medium tannins of this natural red claret make it remarkably versatile at the table. It cuts through rich fats while harmonizing with earthy mushroom and herb flavors without overpowering lighter poultry or roasted vegetable dishes.

## Wine making process

Organically cultivated grapes from Napa Valley and Mendocino County are hand-harvested and co-fermented in small batches using native yeasts at the winery in Richmond, California. The wine undergoes a few weeks of skin maceration before gentle pressing and is aged in neutral oak barriques. It is bottled unfined and unfiltered with zero added sulfur.