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February 2020 – Notes from a Small Vineyard
The 2018 Chardonnay is a story of perseverance and patience.
Ideal weather conditions during flowering presented us with a bountiful crop of Chardonnay, that ripened at an even pace across our three patches of vines. As a result, our window for harvesting was dramatically narrowed, requiring all fruit to be picked and processed over three long consecutive days.
The quality of the grapes presented to us in the winery for pressing put us in high spirits, carrying us forward as our energy levels reduced.
With the juice in barrel, slow wild yeast primary fermentation took over 3 months to complete, taking unusually longer than the full malolactic conversion. The resulting wine has richness and subtle complexity, and most importantly celebrates the fruit quality of the 2018 vintage.
As a bonus to the year, a barrel each of Pinot Meunier and Merlot were made and both are true expressions of their varieties.