HARVESTED: August 29th – September 23, 2013
VINEYARD LOCATION: Woodside and Los Altos Hills
SOILS: Clay loam
BOTTLED: September, 2014
COMPOSITION: 100% Chardonnay
ALCOHOL: 12.8%
PRODUCTION: 347 cases
WINEMAKER: Colin McNany
VINTAGE NOTES
A warm, dry spring brought early bud break, helped with canopy vigor and berry size and created ideal conditions for flowering and fruit set under sunny skies. Temperatures were consistently in the zone for optimal vine activity, resulting in notably healthy vines as fruit went through veraison and started ripening. The August 1 start of harvest in Napa was the earliest in recent history, however, Santa Cruz was 2 weeks behind, which put us right on schedule. A little extra hang time gave us thicker skins for deeper flavours.
WINEMAKING NOTES
We harvest our Chardonnay vineyards in two separate blocks of time, Woodside coming in 2 weeks earlier than Los Altos Hills. The fruit is handpicked, de-stemmed, and sorted on the shaker table. We then add enzymes to increase juice yields and flavour profile from the skins, where in which, it sits on skins anywhere from 4-12 hours. We then hand load the 1 ton stainless steel basket press and press all night via small batches. The juice is cold settled, and racked into 50% barrels and 50% tank, where it begins inoculated ferment for the next 10-0 days @ 60 degrees F. The tank wine, upon completion is put to barrel where partial native malolactic fermentation is achieved with batonnage. Finally, SO2 is added for the first time.
TASTING NOTES
Banana clove creme brulee and spiced apple aromatically interwine with floral elements of honeysuckle and acacia flowers. Crisp acidity and minerality refreshes the palate while reflecting the youthful nuances of the aromatic bouquet.
CELLARING
Due to the high acid backbone of this wine, it loves oxygen. Intended to be consumed now, could be cellared for 2-4 years.