The first Viognier we made was fermented in 70% brand new American oak. I thought this was a bit much so we went back to 40% 2 year old French oak for the 2006, and have continued this with the 2007. The wine came out big and rich, but oily and lacking structure. The addition of 15% Marsanne to the Viognier (as is commonly done around the world) provided some much needed acid and freshened up the wine considerably.

The resulting wine has a floral, apricotty nose and a generous soft palate. This is probably a style best suited to short to medium term cellaring, so jump into it now and see how you go.