2006 Sonoma County Chardonnay
Sonoma County Selection
 

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The Vineyards::
Sonoma County is regarded as the best region in California for Chardonnay! We are fortunate to source grapes from several sub-appellations of Sonoma County, principally from Carneros, Russian River , Sonoma, Dry Creek Valley and Alexander Valleys. The combination of fruit from the various sub-appellations, as well as the diversity of clones and micro-climates allows us make a consistently high quality Chardonnay.

The Vintage:
Although we experienced several heat spikes in late July, the 2006 vintage was later with lower yields than average, due to the cool temperatures in Springtime. Each vineyard was picked and held separately from September 12 to October 15, 2006. The cool weather and extended harvest created a Chardonnay with more minerality and green apple fruit than in the past, akin to a White Burgundy. Due to the lower tonnages, our production was lower than average.

Winemaking:
 We hand-picked and whole cluster pressed the grapes in order to express more Chardonnay fruit flavors. We took an unusually light press cut to minimize green, bitter flavors. 63% of the juice was racked into barrels for barrel fermentation after cold settling. Select yeast strains, including indigenous were utilized, depending on the vineyard. The barrel regime was: 45% French oak (made by renowned coopers in Burgundy), 40% Hungarian oak (from 2 coopers that use tight grain, which makes for slower extracting wood) and 15% American oak (from both Missouri and Minnesota). We stirred the lees frequently in May and June to add more texture and richness. The lots from warmer sub-appellations (37%) were tank fermented cold, prevented from going thru Malo-Lactic fermentation and aged on light lees. All barrel lots were racked out in July and lightly fined prior to bottling, which occurred in September, 2007

Winemaker's Notes
 This wine has nice minerality and citrus fruit in the nose, as well as golden apple and pink grapefruit nuances, due to the cool vintage and the extended hang time. We used a lighter oak regime than in the past in order to showcase its beautiful elegance and silkiness. The bright acidity keeps the fruit and texture nicely in balance, and the finish is laced with vanilla and praline flavors. For those who have grown tired of fat, oaky California Chardonnays, here is a refreshing departure from that style.

 
Mark R. Lyon, Winemaker
Technical Data
Appellation: Sonoma County Composition: 99% Chardonnay; 1% Roussanne
Cooperage:

9 months, sur lie; 45% French Oak; 40% Hungarian Oak; 15% American Oak

Alcohol: 13.5%
TA: .50 g/100ml pH: 3.52
Bottling Date: September 2007 Release Date: September 2007

Past Vintages (downloadable pdf files):

2005

2004

Awards and Acclaim:

2006 Vintage

Double Gold from San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition

5 Stars and By the Glass Selection from Restaurant Wine: " Exceptional. Supple, full, moderately complex in flavor, and quite rich for the price. A wine with a long finish, tasting of vanilla, roasted nut, pear, pineapple, and oak."

88 Points and One Puff from Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine: "This nicely balanced and carefully crafted wine conveys neither head-turning richness nor compelling complexity, but it gets it right in terms of constant, very well-defined varietal fruit and is a complete and genuinely appealing drink. Its polished on the palate and brightened by a welcome bit of fruity acidity and it is nothing short of an out and out bargain at the price.

87 Points from Wine Spectator

87 Points and Best Buyfrom Wine & Spirits : " Baked pear and buttermilk flavors follow the California char don nay standard, yet this is light enough to feel balanced by an orange zest edge of acidity. For popcorn shrimp"

2005 Vintage

89 Points and Best Value Selection from The Wine News: "Viscous gold hue.  Tropical fruit aromas with pineapple and mango highlights.  Supple, oily texture with tasty apple and preach flavors.  Lengthy, ready-to-drink finish with a mix of butterscotch, honey and nutmeg "

88 Points and Best Buy from Wine Enthusiast : "This is a really nice Chardonnay. Sebastiani knows how to make a balanced varietal wine, and this clean, ripe Chardonnay completely satisfies, with fruity flavors and a rich balance of creamy oak, coastal acidity and spicy oak. Best Buy."

86 Points and Smart Buy from Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine: "It may not be among the richer Chardonnays around, nor is it a wine of real complexity, but this nicely made offering is solidly keyed on well-defined fruit and gets a helping hand from a bit of sweet oak. It is rounded in feel, pleasantly balanced and very accessible now, and, if wanting just a little more depth to win enthusiastic endorsement, it is a noteworthy value all the same. GOOD VALUE"

2004 Vintage

89 Points and Best Buy from Wine Enthusiast: "Yummy Chard, complex and delicious. Offers lots of ripe, rich peach and pineapple custard flavors, sweet, toasty oak and a buttery texture. Nice, perky acids keep things lively and clean."

86 Points and Top Value from The Wine Spectator: "Pure delicious fruit is on center stage with fleshy pear, green apple, spice and citrus. Medium-bodied with a cleansing aftertaste. Drink now."

2003 Vintage

88 Points--Smart Buy and Top Value from The Wine Spectator: "Ripe and spicy, with pear, tangerine and nectarine flavors and rich, smoky-toasty oak. Long, luxurious finish."

 
 

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