Nose
The 2016 Chardonnay has a nose of peach, pear, honey toast, brioche, butter and honeysuckle.
Palate
On the palate, it is smooth with no hard edges. There is a touch of an almost oyster shell/saline quality. The wine is full bodied, rich with creaminess to the texture. Fresh and well balanced with a mineral note on the finish.
Growing Conditions
After nearly 4 years of drought, 2016 broke the cycle with a mild moist winter quenching the soil profile with rain. The growing season started frost free with early bud break and nearly perfect shoot growth. This led to a healthy mid-April bloom setting the stage for a early harvest. The summer ripened a moderate but healthy crop, evenly and slowly. Harvest conditions were ideal and without any rush, we brought in fruit that reflects a vintage of refined elegance.
Harvest
All vineyards were handpicked September 5th with 24.60 Brix. We had a morning pick into 1/2 ton picking bins to keep the fruit cool and preserve freshness.
Winemaking
The Chardonnay was whole cluster pressed to barrel. There was no settling in tank since we want to include the lees in the Chardonnay barrels for additional texture and richness. The barrels remained un-racked but with lees stirring until a month before bottling.
