Wines

The eleven vintages blended into this inaugural release of our SPARKLING CHARDONNAY have created a wine of absolute sophistication. It is 100% Chardonnay from the Sonoma Coast, bottled with no dosage, and it offers a taunt, crystalline tension with great, textural breadth and tiny, spiraling bubbles. Intensely saline with notes of quince, lemon peel, crushed rocks, ginger, and hazelnut, it is savory and delicious immediately upon opening, and it continues to expand beautifully as it sits in the glass.

It is an elegant and modern approach that combines the traditional champagne method of producing sparkling wine with the wonderful summer pleasure of enjoying freshly pressed vin gris that was ripening on the vine just a short time ago. The result is an energetic sparkling wine that delivers a bright burst of honeysuckle and orange blossoms aromas followed by mouthwatering red grapefruit and tangerine flavors amongst a continuous bead of tiny bubbles.

The 2.56-acre Holtermann Vineyard, located just north of Annapolis, CA (population 200) and five miles inland from the captivating Sea Ranch coastal community, is truly farming on the edge.  Its proximity to the ocean moderates daily high temperatures and diurnal fluctuations, leading to consistent seasons and slow, balanced fruit development. 

At 19 years of age, this vineyard has truly found its voice, offering a compelling mixture of blood orange and pomegranate flavors, accented with hints of forest floor, mint, licorice and violets, and assembled with the purity and brightness of its high natural acidity.

Sitting six miles from the Pacific, just to the east of the Holtermann Vineyard, the Campbell Ranch Vineyard was originally planted exclusively to Pinot Noir. In 2008, our winemaker, Carroll Kemp, brought Old Wente cuttings from the Platt Vineyard that were selected specifically for the small size of their clusters and mineral flavor profile and grafted just 1.28 acres to Chardonnay, while inter-planting some additional vines to reduce the spacing to 8’ x 2.5’. The result has been mesmerizing.

A true and transparent expression of West Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, this 2021 bottling melds notes of mint, graphite and tangerine oil with white flowers and lemon confit, then delivers them to the palate enclosed in a puff of coastal salinity.

It is an elegant and modern approach that combines the traditional champagne method of producing sparkling wine with the wonderful summer pleasure of enjoying freshly pressed vin gris that was ripening on the vine just a short time ago. The result is an energetic sparkling wine that delivers a bright burst of honeysuckle and orange blossoms aromas followed by mouthwatering red grapefruit and tangerine flavors amongst a continuous bead of tiny bubbles.