Chardonnay, White Wine, California

A classic style, oak-aged, creamy California Chardonnay made from grapes sourced primarily from our vineyard in Napa Valley Carneros. The winter of 2019-2020 brought average rainfall to Sonoma County with the bulk of rain falling January through May. Spring temperatures were mild and warm with bud break two weeks earlier than average. Summer temperatures were above average with less nightly fog and cloud cover June through October. Weather at harvest was ideal with few heat spikes, one over Labor Day weekend, but then the month of September was perfect for ripening. The white grape harvest was completed on October 2nd. Hand-picked grapes are whole cluster pressed into stainless steel tanks where the juice is cold settled for 24 hours. The juice is then racked and transferred to French oak barrels (35% new) for fermentation. After barrel fermentation, the wine is sur lees aged and stirred biweekly for 6 months. The wine is pumped to tank and blended in July, then returned to barrels for an additional 7 months of aging before bottling. This wine has undergone 95% of malolactic fermentation.This wine entices with aromas of vanilla, buttercream, apricot, graham cracker and toasted marshmallow followed by elegant, upfront ripe flavors of pear, peach, apple, orange blossom and brown sugar on the finish. The cool climate of Napa Valley Carneros imparts its unique finesse to the wine, while the Sonoma County component adds a rich mouth-filling character.