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We are proud to present our 2010 "Vieilles Vignes" Estate Chardonnay. The grapes sourced for this native yeast fermented Chardonnay were hand picked and carefully selected from our original vineyard planted in 1980. These old vines yielded an average of 1.8 tons per acre.

Tasting Notes

The nose of this golden color Chardonnay opens with aromas of apple and nutmeg. On the palate pear, nutmeg, and vanilla compliment the rich mouth feel. Expressive minerality and acidity compliment the delicate finish. Drinkability: 2012 to 2015.

Winemaking Notes

Careful pressing of whole clusters minimized skin contact. This gentle process helps the wine achieve balance as well as develop a silky mouthfeel and enhances the aging potential. Using native yeasts, the wine fermented in French oak barrels with 50% malolactic fermentation to preserve the natural acidity. Tonnelleries: Francois Freres and Damy. Oak types: Allier, and Troncais. The wine spent 10 months on the lees in French oak (40% new) prior to bottling.

Vineyard Notes

This Chardonnay was grown exclusively on our estate vineyard located on the Silverado Trail. The shallow, rocky hillside vineyard planted in 1980 stressed the vines sufficiently during the growing season to ensure intense varietal character. We employed a variety of techniques in managing each vineyard's microclimate including vertical trellising, leaf removal and crop reduction.

Harvest Report

A wet winter after the three previous dry years pushed bud break, owering and fruit-set back by three weeks. Luckily, due to a lot of cloud cover, we had very little frost alerts and no frost damage. Early summer brought cooler than normal temperatures, so we had a slightly later than average veraison. Towards the end of August, we were suddenly faced with a triple digit heat spike, but good canopy management kept damage to a minimum. Overall, the 2010 vintage looks to be smaller than in years past, but with excellent fruit quality.