Mayacamas Vineyards Chardonnay 2022

Mayacamas Vineyards Chardonnay is a Mount Veeder Chardonnay built on tension and slow-moving fruit intensity.

When Jack Taylor planted the estate's first Chardonnay in the 1950s, California had perhaps 150 acres of the variety in the ground. Those vines have since been replaced with the classic Wente clone and a little Dijon, but the approach has held since Bob Travers's day: pick precisely, block malolactic fermentation, and let a wine trade youthful tension for opulence with age. Five blocks are spread across the 50 acres of vines on the mountain, between 550 and 640 metres on volcanic ash, gravelly loam and cobbled clay. Whole clusters are pressed gently and the juice ferments slowly in stainless steel and old wood, including 500-litre puncheons and a 1000-litre foudre.

Lemon zest, green almond and wet rock, with a chalky grip and acidity that runs the full length of the palate. Nothing about it is creamy. Pour at 12 degrees alongside oysters, grilled whiting, or a bowl of pasta with lemon and parmesan.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.