2023 The Estate Chardonnay

A bold nose of spicy pear skin and ripe white peach unfolds gracefully, revealing layers of toasted hazelnuts and delicate vanilla bean. Subtle oak lingers in the background, adding depth, richness, and a touch of creamy elegance. This Willamette Valley Chardonnay hums with vibrant, laser-focused energy, finishing with a striking mineral edge and a crisp, rain-on-rock vivacity.

A limited-production, estate-grown wine showcasing Willamette Valley Chardonnay grown in volcanic soils at high-elevation. Hand-harvested in the cool morning hours of September 17th, 2.7 tons of fruit were carefully selected from our 1.28-acre vineyard and placed into half-ton bins. A gentle foot treading precedes whole-cluster pressing, with no settling, allowing for maximum purity and expression. Fermentation takes place in a diverse array of vessels, including new puncheons, ‘cigare’ barrels, a mix of new, one-year, and neutral 228L French oak barrels, and a single stainless steel tank. Each lot undergoes ambient fermentation and is aged for 10 months, with 75% undergoing malolactic fermentation for added texture and depth. Lightly filtered at bottling, this Chardonnay is a true reflection of its origins, balancing precision, richness, and vibrancy.

Vintage: Third

Cases Produced: 205

Year Planted: 2015

Harvest Date: 9/17/2023

Clone: 76

Cropload: 2.7 tons/acre

Élévage: 10 months

Alcohol: 13.6%

Winemaker: Jackson Holstein

Release Date: 3/10/2025

The 2023 Growing Season

The season began on a promising note, with a warmer April than the frosty start of 2022, setting the stage for bloom under clear, sunny skies. From the outset, it was clear the crop would be small, but quality looked exceptional.

Summer unfolded in textbook fashion—warm, consistently sunny, and remarkably dry, with hardly a drop of rain. This steady weather gave us one of our most relaxed harvests to date. We began with Chardonnay on a cool morning, September 17th, under ideal conditions. The extraordinary early-October forecast then allowed us the luxury of choosing perfect days to bring in our diverse Pinot Noir blocks—on September 23rd, October 4th, and October 7th.