2008 Chardonnay, bottled January 2010

An unusually warm February prompted an early start to the growing season. Set finished by late April, but yielded less fruit than usual; a mild summer ripened the grapes for an early-September harvest. The whole clusters went directly to our gentle membrane press. Natural primary and secondary fermentations took place in barrel. All lots spent ten months on their lees, and were stirred weekly during malolactic for added richness. Assemblage combined the most elegant and fruit-forward wines for this superb chardonnay. A portion was returned to barrel for continued aging and settling; the rest remained in tank, to balance freshness and complexity. The two were racked off the lees and reassembled for unfiltered bottling. The wine's abundant fruit and refreshing acidity will be most enjoyable over the next five to six years. [EB 11/09]

Edit this Article