2021 Massale Chardonnay 1.5L

Before and after phylloxera, European growers devoted to quality would select their best vines for propagation. They would observe vines for years, select them for particular traits and then propagate the grouping, a process known as massale selection. This is still practiced widely today in Burgundy. It is also thought that elevating the choice of the vines themselves over their clonal makeup encourages the dominance of terroir over breeding. Given our fixation on Burgundian tradition and techniques, we decided to incorporate these concepts into two of our Chardonnay blocks, planting four different clones – two in each.

MASSALE is the delicious result of this exercise. After some experimentation, we have limited the inputs to the historic Wente clone and clone 548, which were planted together in limestone soils at the highest point in our main vineyard. Wente is already a Massale derived field selection by definition, having been imported from France in the 1880’s. On the other hand, 548 is a newer French clone with which we have had great success, notably in our Sebastiano Chardonnay served on two occasions at the White House. The combination of the two was magic and we instantly recognized a great Chardonnay in the making.

VINIFICATION NOTES:
-Pick date 9/3 and 9/9
-Brix 21.5
-Acidity 7.0 g/L
-pH 3.24
-Crushed, whole cluster pressed, racked to stainless, settled overnight
-Fermented in 228 L. barrique (15% new)
-Racked to foudre
-Racked to stainless, fined and filtered