2014 North by Northwest Columbia Valley Chardonnay

THE WINE:

With over 500 acres planted to Chardonnay, Syrah, Merlot, and Cabernet, Soaring Eagle Vineyard is located in the Wahluke Slope AVA at 600-750 ft. in elevation. Hot and dry with a long growing season, Soaring Eagle is in one of the warmest Washington AVA's. Planted on Burbank loamy fine sand, the site is known for producing ripe, luscious wines with high flavor intensity. The 2014 Chardonnay carries flavors of melon and apple in its medium bodied entrance before rounding out into a balanced and smooth wine. THE PROCESS:

Fruit was handpicked, whole cluster pressed, cold settled, racked, and slow fermented and bene ted from 5 months sur lie aging in 20% new French oak. THE VINTAGE:

Following on the heels of a cold winter, early spring was very wet with double our typical precipitation in March. Rapidly warming temperatures in April led to buds breaking almost a week early - these favorable conditions continued, leading to very strong fruit set after a mid-June bloom. The abundance of fruit allowed for meticulous hand thinning; only the fruit meeting stringent quality parameters were allowed to ripen.
Excellent weather continued throughout the summer, leading to a warmer than average vintage and resulted in excellent ripening conditions. Moving into late summer/early fall the grape clusters were in outstanding condition which combined with unusually dry conditions allowed for extended hang time and enhanced favor development. extended harvest period enabled each vineyard to be harvested at peak ripeness resulting in a crop of fantastic quality.