Vineyards
Dry, temperate summer days cooled by morning and evening fog and afternoon breezes from the nearby Pacific Ocean make Anderson Valley in Mendocino County a unique environment in which to cultivate world-class Chardonnay.  Our sustainably farmed Anderson Valley estate vineyard is planted to nine distinctive, high-quality clones of the variety.  By harvesting and fermenting each clonal lot separately prior to blending, we’re able to craft a regionally expressive, richly flavorful estate Chardonnay displaying ripe, intense fruit flavors, superb balance and impressive complexity.

Vintage 2010
2010 was an unusually cool growing season in California’s coastal wine valleys.  Fortunately, our Chardonnay vineyard in Mendocino’s Anderson Valley is located in the warmer, southern section of the valley, which enjoys temperate summer afternoons.  The year began with substantial winter and spring rainfall – pushing back bud break, flowering and grape set by several weeks – then segued into an atypically cool summer, although heat spikes in late August kick-started full ripening.  Cooler temperatures returned in early September, but classic Indian summer weather followed, allowing us to harvest a crop of perfectly ripened Chardonnay grapes between October 4th and 10th.

Winemaking
After hand-harvesting the fruit at night and whole-cluster-pressing it to guarantee maximum freshness, we transferred each of our nine clonal lots to French Burgundian oak barrels for fermentation.  In 2010, we fermented using 40% native yeasts from the vineyard to enhance the wine’s complexity and expression of terroir.  Our Anderson Valley Chardonnay aged eight months on its yeast lees in French barrels, 37% new, with frequent stirring of the lees to foster a wine of impressive richness and complexity. 

Tasting Notes
Our 2010 Anderson Valley Chardonnay offers a wonderfully fresh, pretty nose of ripe golden apple, pear, melon and bright citrus complemented by seductive honeysuckle, ginger and vanilla scents.  In the mouth, the wine is rich, round and smooth with luscious honeyed apple, pear, melon and yeast flavors that are enriched by a savory toasted oak tone.  Culminating in a long, succulent finish infused with refreshing citrus and mineral notes, this beautifully balanced Chardonnay is delicious on its own, but also delightful with a wide range of foods.  Enjoy it over the next 3-5 years.