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Isabel Mondavi Chardonnay
Napa Valley, California
Tasting Notes
Hints of fresh, red apple and ripe pineapple layered over nuances of lightly toasted brown sugar and vanilla bean imparted by the French oak barrels, allow for depth, balance, and character in our 2018 Chardonnay.
Vintage Notes
With an ideal growing season culminating into a long, slow-paced harvest, the 2018 vintage exhibited plump grape clusters providing for excellent quality and advantageous yields. This marks a change from the last several vintages which exhibited lower yields due to drought conditions. The 2018 growing season, for many, began in late February and was marked by showers in March and April, pushing the timing of bloom back to what is considered by some winemakers a more normal time. The rains also provided adequate moisture for good canopy growth well into the growing season and the mild Spring allowed for extended flowering which eventually led to uniform grape clusters. Temperatures remained steady and warm throughout the growing season, with no significant heat spikes, making for a cool and unhurried harvest which extended into late Autumn.
Tasting Notes
Freshly cut green apples with accents of caramelized brown sugar and French vanilla define the aromatics. The mouthfeel of the wine is electric with beautiful acidity and a true clarity of the Chardonnay grape. Partial malolactic fermentation preserved the remarkable freshness of the grape and aging in small French oak barrels provided depth and balance with extended character. This wine demonstrates a unique balance of firm acidity; authentic fruit; and a wonderful texture from the oak.
Vintage Notes
The overall harvest yield in Napa Valley was slightly under the 10 year average yet quality continued to be above average. The typical seasonal heat spikes were relatively placid and were immediately followed by moderate cold snaps lasting only 2-3 days. The unusual cool recovery from the heat spikes speculatively helped the Chardonnay preserve the freshness and acidity naturally found within the grape. Th e growing season and resulting harvest were, on average, 2-3 weeks earlier than normal which was well-timed as the last half of October came with a bit of rain. Fortunately it was a non-issue because the Napa Valley 2017 harvest was completed. In short 2017 was yet another great year within a decade already richly appointed with exceptional vintages.
Winemaking Notes
The Chardonnay grapes are carefully harvested at night and brought into the cellar in the early hours at first light. The grapes are gently transferred to the press where the juice is extracted from the golden nearly translucent grapes. At this point the winemaking team evaluates the aromatics and unique sensory style of the vintage and determines which of the confidential yeast selections they will use to coax out the nuanced flavors of the vintage. After the yeast is added to the juice the winemaking team departs from convention in making this wine by performing primary and malolactic fermentation at the same time for nearly half of the blend. The simultaneous fermentation preserves the delicate floral aromatics by reducing oxygen exposure which produces a fresher and cleaner expression of Chardonnay with fresh acidity, adding to the depth and complexity of the wine
Tasting Notes
Aromas of freshly cut green apples with accents of caramelizing brown sugar and French vanilla define the aromatics. The mouth feel of the wine is electric with beautiful acidity and a true clarity of the Chardonnay grape. The wine underwent partial malolactic fermentation to preserve the remarkable freshness of the grape with aging in small French oak barrels to provide, depth, balance and extended character. The wine demonstrates a unique balance of firm acid, authentic fruit and a wonderful texture from the oak.
Vintage Notes
As with the past few years in the Napa Valley the overall yield was slightly under the 10 year average yet quality continued to be above average. The typical seasonal heat spikes were relatively placid. These heat spikes were immediately followed by slightly cool to cold snaps lasting 2‐3 days. The unusual cool recovery from the heat spikes speculatively helped the Chardonnay preserve the freshness and acidity naturally found within the grape. The growing season and resulting harvest was on average 2‐3 weeks earlier than normal which was well timed as the last half of October yielded a bit of rain which fortunately was a non‐issue for the Napa Valley’s 2016 vintage as the harvest was completed. In short 2016 was yet another great year within a decade already richly appointed with exceptional vintages.
Winemaking Notes
The Chardonnay grapes are carefully harvested at night and brought into the cellar in the early hours at first light. The grapes are gently transferred to the press where the juice is extracted from the golden nearly translucent grapes. At this point the winemaking team evaluates the aromatics and unique sensory style of the vintage and determines which of the confidential yeast selections they will use to coax out the nuanced flavors of the vintage. After the yeast is added to the juice the winemaking team departs from convention in making this wine by performing primary and malolactic fermentation at the same time for nearly half of the blend. The simultaneous fermentations preserve the delicate floral aromatics by reducing oxygen exposure which produces a fresher and cleaner expression of Chardonnay with fresh acidity, adding to the depth and complexity of the wine
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