The 2018 Platt Chardonnay has a minerality that is both compelling and atypical for California. There are notes of just ripe pear and ripe lemon citrus, along with an intriguing almond wood note. That said, the defining characteristics of the Platt Chardonnay are the acidity, minerality, and the tension in the wine. The wine follows clearly in the footsteps of the beautiful past vintages of Flanagan Chardonnays from Platt Vineyard.
This wine will age, like a great white Burgundy, for a decade or more. This is another masterful effort from what, I believe, is the greatest site for Chardonnay in California.
Vineyard Notes
Platt sits 2.5 miles from the Coast and the vineyard cascades down a south-facing ridgeline. The Goldridge Fine Sandy loam soils are the most sought after for Pinot Noir and afford excellent drainage. The consistent west wind provides good airflow which helps keep the grapes clean. The Chardonnay blocks sit at the higher elevations, 625-850 feet above sea level, and are frequently (but not always) above the fog that fills the valley most every morning.
We aged the wine in Atelier Centre France cooperage for 14-months with 40% new barrels. The Platt site, like Grand Cru Chablis sites, is expressive of the vineyard terrior and reflective of a balanced barrel regime. I believe in letting each site express itself and that means that each of our wines has a unique barrel program and wine chemistry that reflect that particular site in a given vintage.