2021 Chardonnay, Napa Valley

Tasting Notes

"Notes of baked apples and grilled pineapple with hints of honeysuckle, walnut and beeswax. Fine and polished with a medium to full body and refined, lingering chalkiness. Crunchy and mineral at the end." 92 Points, James Suckling

"Good, underlying crisp-apple acidity gives a refreshing quality to this tasty, buttery wine as it balances tanginess with good, ripe golden apple and Bartlett pear flavors. Will pair well with all sorts of salads, seafood and entrees." 91 points, Jim Gordon, Wine Enthusiast

Winemaking Details

The 2021 vintage was an exceptional vintage. It was a drought year, yet Napa had a decent amount of rain during the winter and spring to fill reservoirs and soil profiles. The prevailing weather was cool, without fire or heat waves. Yields ended slightly below average with fantastic quality, depth, and concentration. 

For our signature 2021 Chardonnay, we increased the quality and range of the vineyard sites we source from. In particular, instead of making a single vineyard Castellucci Chardonnay, we used that fruit for this Napa Valley blend. We also added a new vineyard site, Antica from Atlas Peak, and retained a healthy amount of fruit from our best Carneros growers. 

Each of our vineyard sources contribute to the wine’s overall complexity. The Castellucci Vineyard offered up gorgeous ripeness, the Antica Vineyard lovely freshness, and our Carneros sites added remarkable varietal typicity. The result is a Chardonnay that is ripe, concentrated, and fresh.

We devised special winemaking programs for each of vineyard sources that were designed to accentuate site nuances. Overall, most of this wine saw Malo-lactic and barrel fermentation, and a portion of the lots saw new French oak.