WINEMAKER NOTESThe Chardonnay clone used for this wine is 100% Wente clone, a long sought after clone for Chardonnay. After handpicking, the fruit was hand sorted and whole cluster pressed in a gentle Champagne press cycle. The juice was then cold settled and racked to barrels dirty on its heavy lees solids. The Chardonnay then underwent a native yeast barrel fermentation in 100% French oak barrels (35% new and 65% neutral). This wine went through approximately 75% of its malolactic fermentation to enhance body and mouthfeel. Lees stirring was performed every 3 weeks during its life to also build upon body, texture, and structure. Overall, the wine was aged on the lees for 14 months before filtration and bottling.
THE VINTAGEThe 2019 vintage began with bud break in late March, leading to a Spring that had few showers and was relatively dry. Summer was also quite warm and long, leading into a steady Autumn harvest season. The consistent summer weather encouraged our Chardonnay grapes to ripen in mid-September. The fruit was handpicked on September 20th, 2019 at optimal flavors and ripeness.