Ramey Wine Cellars

California

Chardonnay, Russian River Valley

Russian River Valley

$38 USD

Release Price

Drink Window

14.5%

ABV

pH

TA

RS

Growing Conditions

Thirty percent from three different Dutton ranches, 29% from three Martinelli vineyards, 14% King, 10% Rochioli Vineyards (with Allen), 8% Forchini, 3% Green Pastures (a 42-year-old Wente vineyard back Felta Creek Road), and this vintage we declassified a bit of Hyde (6%) into the Russian River blend. Normally, a slightly warmer climate compared with our Sonoma Coast sites results in an earlier harvest from these vineyards with a somewhat richer texture and flavor than our Sonoma Coast bottling—but that difference is less pronounced this vintage.

2011 was the coolest vintage in many years, one which was chased into the winery by a series of rainstorms. In fact we made less of this blend this year since two of our vineyards didn’t ripen and were not harvested for us. Those that came in, however, produced our style of Chardonnay—a perfect balance of old world style and new world fruit, albeit leaner than in warmer vintages.

Bottling

After spending the following vintage in tank, these 2011’s were bottled without filtration in February 2012.

Winemaking

Whole-cluster pressing for delicacy, native-yeast barrel fermentation, aging sur lies with bâtonnage, and full native malolactic fermentation.

Aging

Our appellation Chardonnays are given less new oak—twenty to twenty-five percent—and spend less time in barrel—twelve months–than the single-vineyard wines, but otherwise are made identically to them.

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