2008 Unoaked Chardonnay
Winemaker's Notes
A new product for us, this whole-cluster pressed, 100% stainless steel fermented wine shows off the pure essence of Russian River Valley chardonnay. The aromas of ripe Pink Lady apples, Anjou pears, Sun Crest peaches, and fresh honeysuckle dominate the nose of this blend. Bold flavors of ripe apples, nectarines, mineral and fresh pineapple fill your mouth. Refreshing acidity (no malo-lactic) gives this wine the ability to pair with almost any food. Most of this fruit was sourced from older chardonnay vineyards along Westside Road.
—Winemaker Bob Cabral
The Vineyard
The chardonnay for this blend was sourced from the Allen Vineyard, the Bacigalupi Vineyard, the Flax Vineyard, and the Lazy W Ranch on Westside Road.
Harvest 2008
2008 provided very concentrated, flavorful and high quality wines that are vividly expressive of the vineyards in which they were grown, despite being a difficult year for growing. The combination of numerous springtime frosts and cold rains damaged our buds and clusters, thus resulting in a lighter than average year. During the summer, the vines encountered near-perfect fruit ripening weather characterized by warm and sunny days with exceptionally few heat spikes. Very warm August temperatures quickened ripening beginning a very early, fast and furious harvest. The decreased yields resulted in very concentrated and extremely high quality wines, with brilliant flavor and phenolic ripening. The wines of 2008 express their distinctive sites and qualities in a very intense and focused manner: this is truly a vintage for the cellars, with great ageing potential for years to come.
Technical Notes
| pH: | 3.36 |
|---|---|
| TA: | 0.70g/100ml |
| Alc.: | 13.8% |
| Release Date: | Spring 2010 |
| Release Price: | $35 |