About This Wine

Vintage
2006 featured one of the longest growing seasons in recent memory. Fantastic weather during bloom left us with a real crop on the vines, something quite different than 2005. The longer cool growing season was ideal for producing lovely aromatics and silky textures, real hallmarks for us in 2006. The vintage yielded wines that are remarkably pure and translucent, highlighting regional and vintage characteristics.

Vineyards
Langley Hill is our largest plot of Estate Chardonnay. It occupies a steep hillside offering numerous exposures and soil types. It is not unheard of for us to make five passes though the 5.25 acres each harvest. Langley Hill is often the last of our Chardonnays to be picked. It’s a decidedly cool site that ripens grapes at a slower pace than neighboring vineyards. The vineyard’s lack of heat and exposure to the elements yields a Chardonnay that is steely and structured with persistent citrus and mineral flavors

Winemaking
We harvest our Chardonnay early in the morning to ensure cold fruit, which preserves aromatics and delicacy in the resulting juice. The grapes are added to the press for gentle whole-cluster pressing followed by a cool barrel fermentation. Weekly batonage during the 18 months in French oak barrels (50% new) added flesh and texture to the brilliant spine of acidity and bright mountain fruit. We bottled the wine unfiltered to preserve the magnificent texture and delicate aromatics.

Tasting Notes
The 2006 Langley Hill Chardonnay has all the elements we love in fine mountain Chardonnay: bright acidity, citrus fruit and enough weight/richness to balance the trim structure. The vineyard always produces intriguing aromatics and flavors with good mouthfeel and structure. Drink now or over the next 2-6 years.

TECHNICAL DATA:

Appellation
Santa Cruz Mountains

WINEMAKER
Michael Martella and Nathan Kandler

VINEYARDS
100% Langley Hill Estate Vineyard

Distance to ocean: 10 miles
Elevation / Exposure: 1925 Feet / southeastern, steep
Climate: Cool, Mountain, Maritime
Soils: Various loam over gravel and bedrock, fractured shale and sandstone
Finished alcohol: 13.2%
Acid/pH: .58/3.46
Oak Treatment: 100% French 18 Months, 50% New Oak
Total production: 94 cases
Release date: March 28, 2009
California suggested retail: $48.00

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