Fall Release Chloe Chardonnay
2009

Winemaker’s Notes

Our new Chloe release takes Chardonnay elegance and sophistication to a new level for us. In the style of the vintage this wine shows great freshness allied to natural richness, all supported by a vein of mineral acidity that pulses through the wine. It offers plenty of weight but the mixed stone fruit flavors never overpower remaining vibrant and delicate throughout – the wine really feels alive and striking. This bottling has moved to an old vine blend of three unique, memorable vineyards each planted between 1972 and 1974. The 2008 blend is joined for the first time by a small block of wonderful fruit from the acclaimed Lorenzo Vineyard in the heart of the RRV. These old vines, grown on mineral rich clay soils, lend tremendous power of flavor and acidity to the wine with a remarkably intense citrus oil character. It finely compliments the mineral directness of Ritchie and the softer honeyed floral delicacy of Searby. I suggest drinking this wine in the first couple of years after release if you favor citrus intensity. With five years of age the honeyed, baked apple flavors should take control offering something quite distinct indeed.

Pale yellow straw color; assertive aromas of honeysuckle, baked apple, melon, zesty citrus and faint beeswax. Great elegance and freshness on the palate. Bright, crisp apples, white peach, oatmeal complexity gains weight in the glass. Oily mid palate texture, crushed-stone minerality and nutmeg notes. Trace of grapefruit on the acid-driven granular finish. Serve at no cooler than 55 degrees and drink between 2012 and 2016.

Andy Smith Viticulturist, Winemaker & Partner