Growing Conditions
For some, the growing season of 2015 was one of the most challenging in recent years. At Knights Bridge, our east-facing, hillside vineyards in Knights Valley are cooler and protected by the surrounding terrain, allowing our fruit to thrive despite an unpredictable season. Rewarded with a warm and consistent summer, our Chardonnay enjoyed long hang-time, producing rich, luscious fruit.
Each of the select blocks chosen for the Pont de Chevalier Chardonnay is hand-picked at optimum ripeness. Harvested in the pre-dawn hours on a handful of days from September 2 to September 17, the grapes were whole-cluster pressed and the juice was allowed to fully settle before fermentation.
Aging
The wine was racked clean to 60% new French oak and 40% previously used French oak barrels. The wine aged in barrel for 10 months before bottling.
