Chardonnay Reserve 2023
$ 19.00The grapes are allowed to achieve a proportionately higher potential alcohol on the vine than our classic Chardonnay.
Then, selecting 2nd and 3rd-use barrels of French and American oak for fermentation and for aging, we preserve Chardonnay’s inherent effusiveness and lengthen its palate performance without malolactic fermentation. Core varietal aromas and flavors are thereby captured, and extended by batonnage through several months on the lees.
Featured profile
FOOD PAIRINGS
White Wine Risotto with Parmigiano and chive
Bisque of Fresh Eastern Shore Shrimp
Streamed blue crab
TASTING NOTES
The wine is exploding with rich and complex flavors of pear, apple, and vanilla, a lavishly textured palate. Good acidity is well proportioned to the generous body and allows extended cellaring.
Vinification
VINTAGE FACTORS
Cellar life 5 yrs
March brought a with a bit of apprehension with much warmer than average temperatures indicating a potential early bud-break which may have resulted in high risk of frost damage in April, finally at the end of the third week the temperatures dropped in normal range and were followed but a beautiful April with ideal gradual warm up. Flowering started on May 15th and ended in early June with ideal mild temperature and gentle winds. The summer delivered gentle rains at the right time and harvest started in mid-August to finish in late September. The cluster were perfectly ripe in all varietals and produced some of the best wines ever in all varietals. A stellar Octagon vintage.
Fermentation
In used and new barrels of French and American oak for 10-12 days at 70ºF; no malolactic fermentation
Aging
On the lees in used and new French and American oak for up to 8 months
Composition
Chardonnay 100%
Analysis
Alcohol, 13.0%
Residual Sugars, 0.2%
Total Acidity, 0.61%