2017 Cherry Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay
Fragrant and aromatic, this lively Chardonnay pops with high tone notes of ruby red grapefruit, honeysuckle, Muscat and fresh tropical fruits. These juicy flavors carry over onto the palate with pineapple and mango-guava flavors. The fruit is supported by great acidity and length.
The 2017 growing season kicked off with record rainfall, a welcome addition after almost five years of drought. In the early spring the weather began to clear, and the growing season began to look up with sunny and warm conditions. Around flowering, weather conditions started to oscillate between foggy and windy days and unusually hot spikes. This continued into June, where unseasonably hot weather left clusters with small berries and a much lighter crop than predicted. More very hot weather arrived at the end of August and remained for two weeks, causing us to scramble to get the grapes into the winery at ideal ripeness levels. Fortunately, our many farming relationships delivered wonderfully, escaping most of the heat related stresses, delivering perfectly ripe fruit. We started harvest on August 18th with sparkling cuvee and brought our last grapes in on September 27th. When the fires broke out in Napa and Sonoma the night of October 8 we had, fortunately, already picked all our grapes.
This steep vineyard, between Occidental Road and Cherry Ridge Road, in the Russian River Valley is farmed by the Dutton family. It has Goldridge sandy loam soils and low-yielding clusters. 100% crafted from the Spring Mountain selection of Chardonnay, this Heirloom Chardonnay is a throwback to early California plantings that showcase aromatic Muscat selections of Chardonnay known for their spicy floral, almost Viognier like character.
100% Whole-cluster pressed
100% Burgundian French oak barrels (25% new; 75% 1-2-year old)
Bottled without filtration to preserve the wine’s aromas and flavors and enhance aging potential
- Type:
- White
- Varietal:
- Chardonnay
- Region:
- California
- Appellation:
- Russian River Valley
- Vintage:
- 2017
- Blend:
- 100% Chardonnay fruit
- Aging:
- Sur lie aged with weekly stirring
- Alcohol:
- 14.2
- Fermentation:
- 100% indigenous yeast fermentations; 100% malo-lactic fermentation in barrel