Country: | United States |
Regions: | California California (Sonoma County) |
Winery: | Ferren Wines |
Grape Type: | Chardonnay |
Vintage: | 2015 |
Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Lancel Creek Vineyard is perched above the tiny hamlet of Occidental on the remote Sonoma Coast. This secluded, two-acre site was prepared, planted, and is still tended by Ulises Valdez. The pale, off-white Goldridge soil provides just enough nutrients and moisture for these densely planted vines to ripen a small amount of intensely aromatic and flavorful Chardonnay. The vineyard faces the Pacific Ocean, a mere five miles to the west. The combined influence of the cold Pacific and the warming afternoon sun produces a wine of incredible richness and sublime balance.
Soil types: Goldridge, fine sandy loam.
Age of the vines: 15 years
Ferren Chardonnay Sonoma Coast is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
The Sonoma Coast bottling is a blend of barrels from Ferren's single vineyard offerings; Lancel Creek, Silver Eagle, Volpert, and Frei Road Vineyards. The wine is always somewhat more approachable early in its life as less new oak is used in the blend. Pure and translucent fruit is the hallmark of this cuvée. Citrus, quince, sea spray, and minerals are buoyed by refreshing acidity and a seamless finish.
Ferren Chardonnay Sonoma Coast is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
The Sonoma Coast bottling is a blend of barrels from Ferren's single vineyard offerings; Lancel Creek, Silver Eagle, Volpert, and Frei Road Vineyards. The wine is always somewhat more approachable early in its life as less new oak is used in the blend. Pure and translucent fruit is the hallmark of this cuvée. Citrus, quince, sea spray, and minerals are buoyed by refreshing acidity and a seamless finish.
Laird Chardonnay Cold Creek is 100% Chardonnay
Our Cold Creek Chardonnay is grown in the slightly cooler microclimate of the Sonoma side of the Los Carneros district to the west, where thick fog and cool marine winds protect its tender skins. Indigenous to the Burgundy region of France, Clones 15 and 95 at a 50:50 ratio exhibit an approachable style and luminous, golden color.
Tasting Notes: The appearance of golden straw leads you through an aromatic journey with notes of tropical fruits, sweet nectarine, melon, and vanilla. The wine has flavors of jasmine, citrus, and ripe Fuji apple that are complemented by a creamy mouthfeel and hints of lemon curd. The finish lingers on the palate, making you yearn for the next sip.
Vineyard: 100% Cold Creek Ranch
Appellation: Los Carneros
Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
50% Malolactic Fermentation
Lancel Creek Vineyard is perched above the tiny hamlet of Occidental on the remote Sonoma Coast. This secluded, two-acre site was prepared, planted, and is still tended by Ulises Valdez. The pale, off-white Goldridge soil provides just enough nutrients and moisture for these densely planted vines to ripen a small amount of intensely aromatic and flavorful Chardonnay. The vineyard faces the Pacific Ocean, a mere five miles to the west. The combined influence of the cold Pacific and the warming afternoon sun produces a wine of incredible richness and sublime balance.
Soil types: Goldridge, fine sandy loam.
Age of the vines: 15 years
Review:
"Rich and full-bodied, with bold, assertive yet graceful fig, melon, apricot and tangerine notes, showing a nice oak dimension and ending long, deep, complex and persistent. Drink now through 2022. 110 cases made. – JL"
- Wine Spectator (June 2018), 93 pts
Ferren is a winery dedicated to tiny lots of artisanally made single-vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot noir wines from the far Sonoma Coast of California. Each of the vineyards in the portfolio is a jewel of the true Coast, has been hand picked based on its potential for producing profound, age-worth wines, and is farmed to the highest standards of sustainability and wine quality.
Date Founded: 2013
Winemaker Matt Courtney founded Ferren with longtime friend David Wherritt after an eight-year apprenticeship with Helen Turley at Marcassin Vineyard on the Sonoma Coast. The wines are made using traditional Burgundian methods without fining or filtration, and fermentations are carried out exclusively by native flora that arrive on the grapes from the vineyards.
SILVER EAGLE VINEYARD
Silver Eagle Vineyard rests atop Stoetz Ridge, the land mass that divides the remote Sonoma Coast from the Russian River Valley. This vineyard experiences both the cooling ocean breezes of the nearby Pacific, as well as the warmth of the interior valley. The wine made from this unique confluence of climates is extraordinary: the Pinot noir a rare balance of explosive wild berry, mouth-watering acidity, and rich, polished tannins; the Chardonnay a fascinating juxtaposition of briny minerality and candied citrus.
Our brilliant vineyard manager Ulises Valdez owns this vineyard, and has built his home on this spectacular site.
Paul Hobbs Russian River Pinot Noir is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir.
Sourced predominately from the estates that are defined by their proximity to the coast and Russian River climate, the wine displays vivid crimson and aromas of violet, Morello cherry, and black tea. Velvet tannins on the palate ride along a juicy backbone of flavors such as cranberry, Blood orange, and Damson plum. The finish is long, powered behind a crisp acidity and appealing red clay-like minerality.
Hugl Gemischter Satz is made from 50% Grüner Veltliner, 40% Gelber Muskateller and 10% Riesling.
Gemischter Satz" has a long history in Austria. It is a field blend where different grape varieties are picked at the same time and vinified together:
In Vienna, the tradition of planting different and complementary grape varieties together in a vineyard – then harvesting and fermenting them together as well – has survived to the present day as Gemischter Satz. Thanks to the dynamic efforts of ambitious winegrowers, this traditional rarity has grown in stature and recognition to become the calling card of viticulture in Austria’s capital city.
Gemischter Satz is very popular in Vienna’s Heurigen (the Viennese term for wine taverns). Historically, Heurigen were simple places, where vineyard owners would open their doors during wine season to serve glasses of this years wine and juices to guests. At most, a plate of cold meats and cheese could be served along with the delicious wine.
For the traditional wines of Wiener Gemischter Satz - the planting of different grape varieties together in one vineyard - a unique style profile has been developed; a style that reflects the wine's origin-typical aromas and flavours. The regulation for the Wiener Gemischter Satz DAC requires that at least three white quality wine varieties must be planted together in one vineyard that is listed in the Viennese vineyard register as Wiener Gemischter Satz. The highest portion of one grape variety must be no more than 50%; the third highest portion must be at least 10%. Wines without vineyard indication must be dry and without any prominent wood flavour. The Wiener Gemischter Satz DAC can be marketed with an indication of vineyard site also. Single vineyard wines do not necessarily have to correspond with the “dry” taste indication, and they cannot be released for sale prior to March 1st of the year following the harvest. Minimum alcohol % of 12.5%.
Adds an enthusiastic Herbert Schilling, head of Vienna's Regional Wine Committee: “With the Wiener Gemischter Satz DAC, we've achieved a milestone in the consistent, years-long quality policy for wine growing in Vienna. The new regulations sharpen the origin profile of Wiener Gemischter Satz and, at the same time, reflect Vienna´s diversity in the glass.”