Eyrie - Chardonnay 'The Eyrie' 2021

Our Chardonnay The Eyrie originates from The Eyrie Vineyard and is a selection from the best barrels of the vintage. . Old vines give the wine a distinctly direct connection to the mineral underlayment of the soil. Firm acidity complements a richly textured mid-palate spiked with notes of flowers and sea grass. These oldest vines in the Willamette Valley are among the last surviving remnants of the Draper field selection, a French import from the 1930s now extinct outside of our region. Upon harvest, the grapes from these venerable vines are gently destemmed, crushed and pressed in slow cycles. The wine ferments in mostly neutral French oak barrels and ages in our cool cellar for one year on the lees. Since each barrel ferments with its own yeast and ages at its own rate, each barrel becomes very distinct. Before bottling, Jason tastes each barrel. Those barrels which speak to the longest aging potential become the The Eyrie Chardonnay.