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Wine Details
Price:
Description:
The fruit for this wine comes from vineyards in the Carneros, Sonoma Valley and Russian River areas in Sonoma County. These appellations are characterized by foggy mornings and cool breezes that keep the fruit at an optimum temperature; perfect conditions for growing premium Chardonnay grapes.
The 2003 vintage was long and cool which enabled the grapes to slowly ripen. This gradual ripening made for a relatively calm harvest that allowed us to hand pick the grapes when they reached their peak ripeness.
The fruit for this wine was whole cluster pressed and fermented in French oak barrels and then allowed to age “sur lies” for five months while the wine underwent malolactic fermentation. The individual lots were then selected for blending and bottling.
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Varietal Definition
Chardonnay:
Chardonnay is by far the most widely planted grape crop in California and dominates California’s cooler, coastal, quality wine regions. The natural varietal ‘taste and smell’ of Chardonnay is surprisingly unfamiliar to many wine drinkers, as its true character is often guised with dominating winemaking signatures. Chardonnay’s rather subdued primary fruit characteristics lean toward the crisp fruitiness of apples, pears and lemon, but the variety’s full body is capable of supporting a host of complementary characteristics, such as oak, butter and vanilla. Regardless of what is the appropriate style for Chardonnay, the varietal continues to dominate vineyard plantings in every corner of the world. Close attention to clonal selection has made this broad geographic and climactic range of Chardonnay viable in thoughtful viticultural hands.
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