Palate
bright, textured fruit
Growing Conditions
The near-perfect growing season started early and the weather cooperated all summer. Warm, breezy days were offset by chilly, clear nights. Rain didn’t arrive until mid-October, and by then these Chardonnay grapes were already in the barn, so to speak.
Winemaking
Hand-picked Chardonnay clusters were field-sorted into half-ton bins between September 10 and 21, then gravity-transferred into the press where a gentle whole cluster press cycle delivered a modest 155 gallons per ton. After settling, the juice was fermented in temperature-controlled stainless tanks (80%) and new French barrels (20%). Ten months tank and new French barrel maturation along with several battonage series (lees stirring) and malo in the 40% of the barrel lots helped develop layered texture and its classic mouth-feel. Our 2016 is creamy, crisp, balanced, and expresses this celebrated vintage perfectly.
Aging
Stainless tanks (80%) and new French barrels (20%)
