Vineyard

2023 was a year for the weather record books. We received 50”+ of rain (average is 35”). Our Winter and Spring temperatures were much colder than normal, delaying bud break (when the vine begins to grow) by a month. Warm days and cool nights during the Summer were ideal for flavor development, but because of the delay in the growing season, harvest began at least three weeks later than normal.

Cellar

Our Reserve Chardonnay is made following techniques I learned during my internship at Domaine des Comtes Lafon in Meursault, France. We began in the vineyard by growing a Burgundian-bred Chardonnay clone (Dijon 76). At the winery, we inoculated the juice with two Burgundian yeasts (Montrachet and CY 3079), then barrel-fermented the juice in French oak barrels to give the wine a roasted nuts aroma and a richness on the palate. After primary fermentation, we moved half of this wine and its lees (yeast sediment) to older French oak barrels to allow the wine to develop and mature without becoming too oaky. Only 8% of the Reserve is aged in new oak. Like at Lafon, all of the wine underwent malolactic fermentation. This traditional Burgundian technique converted the grapes’ natural malic acid to the softer lactic acid, adding richness and complexity.

We aged the Reserve sur lies (on its sediment) in barrels in our caves for 15 months and utilized bâtonnage (stirring the lees) every two weeks to give the wine a creamy texture and a flinty aroma. The wine was bottled in February 2025, then bottle aged for 14 months before release. 

Drinkability

The 2023 Reserve Chardonnay is fruit-forward and youthful. It opens with lovely fruit aromas of orange blossom, Charentais melon and lychee that are enhanced with notes of wet granite and toasted brioche. Rich, supple, round on the palate, it has flavors of lemon cream, pink grapefruit and roasted nuts. The sweet vanilla toastiness from barrel-fermentation and extended barrel-aging enhance its bouquet. Lovely now, the 2023 Reserve has the structure and excellent balance to allow it to age for at least three more years.

At Harvest:

22.3° Brix
0.65 g/100mls TA
33.30 pH

At Bottling:

13.5% alcohol
0.61 g/100mls TA
3.47 pH