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 Vintage1998 Label 1 of 3 
(NOTE: Label borrowed from 2005 vintage.)
TypeWhite
ProducerBrewer-Clifton (web)
VarietyChardonnay
Designationn/a
VineyardSweeney Canyon
CountryUSA
RegionCalifornia
SubRegionCentral Coast
AppellationSanta Ynez Valley

Drinking Windows and Values
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Brewer-Clifton

Producer website

Addt'l Info (Jackson Family Wine Group)

Born of an obsession with Santa Barbara County terroir, we formed Brewer-Clifton in the early 1990’s. We both had significant sales and production experience with a multitude of Santa Barbara County wineries, and always felt compelled to push the limits of the fruit from the area further than our previous employers had set forth to do. We set out to put the essence of the best vineyards in the area into a bottle.

We focus our efforts solely on the production of vineyard designated Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from several carefully selected, extreme vineyards in the Sta. Rita Hills appellation. The area's long growing seasons and diversity of marine-based soils combine to produce dynamic and explosive wines with great purity and precision. Each vineyard site is nurtured identically, allowing the pedigree of place to play the most significant role in our portfolio of wines.

In addition to our collective efforts, Steve Clifton also produces wine under his own label, called Palmina, which focuses exclusively on Italian varietals, and is the winemaker at Tritono, an Argentine producer of Malbec. Greg Brewer produces wine under the diatom label, as well as being the winemaker at Melville, a Santa Rita Hills winery dedicated to estate grown Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah.

Brewer-Clifton wines are only available in small quantities. Total production averages between 4,000 and 6,500 cases annually.

Brewer-Clifton is owned and operated by Steve Clifton, a musician, and Greg Brewer, a former professor of French. The pair started Brewer-Clifton in 1995 and they source grapes from the Santa Rita Hills appellation. Brewer-Clifton makes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and sparkling wine. The wines earn ratings in the 90s from reviewers, and Wine Advocate has noted that “Brewer and Clifton consistently deliver delicious wines that are also deeply thought provoking with regards to the potential these vineyard sites hold.”

Chardonnay

The Chardonnay Grape

USA

American wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.

California

2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson

Central Coast

http://www.ccwinegrowers.org/links.html

http://www.discovercaliforniawines.com/regional-wine-organizations/

http://beveragetradenetwork.com/en/btn-academy/list-of-winegrowers-association-in-central-coast-california-274.htm

Central Coast AVA Wikipedia

Santa Ynez Valley

The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is the largest wine sub-region of Santa Barbara County and has the highest concentration of vineyards. The valley runs from east to west, between the Purisima Hills and the San Rafael Mountains in the north, and the Santa Ynez Mountains in the south. Although the valley is open to the Pacific Ocean in the west, the fact that it is relatively narrow means that limited cool air and fog is funnelled in. Low average rainfall and a very long growing season make the region ideal for quality wine production.

The diverse climates of Santa Ynez Valley mean that a wide array of wines is produced. The cool, western part of the AVA is predominantly planted with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, accompanied by other aromatic white varieties. Botrytis cinerea (noble rot) is able to flourish here, allowing some outstanding dessert wines to be produced in suitable vintages. Further east, the cooling effect of the ocean is lessened as both vineyard elevation and average temperatures increase. This warmer part of Santa Ynez Valley is more suited to fuller-bodied grape varieties, such as Syrah and Merlot.
more ...s expected, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir thrive, while the more inland zones lay claim to Bordeaux varietals and some Rhone blends.

 
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