2016 Wildcat Mountain 3L

92 Points: Robert Parker Wine Advocate

91 Points: Wine Enthusiast

The 2016 vintage had early bud break and an aggressive growing season. Then just when we were about to pick, cool temperatures in August slowed everything down. Grapes were picked from five distinct blocks planted to five different clones: 95, 76, 4, 17, and 15. Each block had a unique harvest picking date between September 13th and 28th, 2016.

The grapes for this Chardonnay came exclusively from Wildcat Mountain Vineyard, owned by Steve MacRostie and his partners Nancy and Tony Lilly. At Wildcat, the vines dig into the sparse volcanic soil and stand firm against the strong winds that race in off of the Pacific Ocean most afternoons. This fog-shrouded mountaintop vineyard is a classic Sonoma Coast site. Cool and challenging, it yields wines of great distinction.

• composition:

  100% Chardonnay

• alcohol: 14.80%
• bottling date: 08/16/2017
• aging:

  Aged 10 months in French oak, 22% new

• fermentation:

  Whole cluster pressed then racked into French oak for primary and malolactic fermentation