Estate Chardonnay 2021

This cuvée comes from the Staglin family estate in Rutherford, in the heart of the Napa Valley in California. This part of the valley floor, sheltered between the Mayacamas and Vaca mountains, enjoys sunny days and cool mornings. In 2021, a dry season with steady temperatures produced very low yields, with particularly small berries and bunches, a guarantee of grapes of great aromatic intensity.

The harvest ran from 19 August to 17 September, in the cool early hours of the morning, in order to preserve freshness, acidity and delicacy of aroma. The wine is fully barrel-fermented, then aged for 10 months in large 500- and 600-litre barrels, made up of 47% new wood and 53% previously used wood.

This wine reveals notes of flint, spring flowers, citrus blossom, honeycomb, nutmeg, lemon, Jonagold apple and wet stone. Mineral at first then floral, the bouquet opens onto citrus and orchard fruit. The powerful, polished and precise palate, both concentrated and slender, rests on crystalline acidity and discreet oak that frames a long finish.

In the United States, 90% of the wine produced comes from California. It was the influx of gold prospectors to California that boosted the California wine industry in the mid-19th century, particularly in the Sonoma and Napa region. At the start of the 20th century, there were 800 wineries. From 1919 to 1933 Prohibition destroyed the vast majority of the California wine industry so that by 1933, only 140 wineries remained producing wine. It was only from 1960 that the wine industry began to recover from Prohibition and California was primarily known for the production of fortified wines (in the style of Port). It was also in the 1960s that some of the most famous estates were created (Mondavi, Heitz Wine Cellars, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, etc...). In 1976, a significant event took place: the legendary tasting competition better known as the "Judgment of Paris". He sees the greatest French wines opposing the new American wines. This May 24, an unexpected result shakes the world of wine, since to everyone's surprise, it is the United States which wins. However, this competition remains relatively unknown to the general public. Today, there is no doubt that the United States produces great wines. Even though California largely monopolizes the reputation of American wines with its excellent Zinfandels, the state of Oregon produces some of the best Pinot Noir in the world and the state of Washington offers excellent Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet-Sauvignon.