Mersel Phoenix Skin Contact Merwah Lebanon 2023

This "Phoenix" skin-contact cuvée is made from such centenarian vines. It's organically-farmed, own-rooted, and planted on sandy volcanic soils in the cooler climate Wadi Qannoubine Valley at 1300 meters above sea level. This is an area where many of the vineyards went untended for decades due to war, land mines, and people simply leaving the country. Three weeks on the skins in a mix of steel and amphora, it's lightly orange in color but retaines plenty of freshness and just a little funk. There is a lovely volcanic salinity and crunchy texture to the wine, with notes of orange peel and dried apricot.