2006 J Chardonnay, Russian River Valley

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The Vineyards       
The grapes for this Chardonnay come from three blocks off our Estate Vineyards in the Russian River Valley.  Block 2 is planted to Clone 4 and Block 2A is planted to clone 76, while Nonny’s Vineyard is planted to Clone 4 and Wente and parallels the Russian River.

Winemaking
Whole grape clusters were then pressed gently in J's Coquard whole-cluster press.  This unique gentle press minimizes the extraction of harsh components from the skins of the grapes.  Free-run juice and press fraction juices were fermented separately with indigenous and wild yeasts and were left to ferment up to four months.

Ageing      
For this wine, the winery went to great lengths in finding unique French oak coopers who select from specific forests.  This wine is 100% barrel fermented and aged in 60-gallon French oak, 80% new and was allowed to go through two additional months of malolactic fermentation. One of the benefits of long fermentations is the barrels receive an automatic batonage through its extraordinary six months of extended fermentation, resulting in exceptional sur lie character.  This Chardonnay was then blended and aged for an additional three months in the bottle before release. 

Tasting Notes
J’s 2006 Russian River Chardonnay captures delicious aromas of apples, kumquat, caramel, toasted nuts and oranges, creating seamless flavors of lemon custard and apples with subtle oak notes.  The texture is smooth and sensual, with a long finish of pineapples.  This opulent Chardonnay pairs beautifully with Caramelized Day Boat Scallops in an Orange Saffron Reduction with Micro Greens.