Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Extremely aromatic, with intense flint, dried lemon and white peach. Crushed stone, too. Full-bodied with layered and creamy tannins that show super length and depth. Exciting to drink now but will age beautifully.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Chardonnay EGW, which I last tasted in December of 2021, is transparent, pure and singular, its wafts of allspice and matchstick complemented by tones of grilled peaches, spring honey, pie crust and lemongrass. The medium-bodied palate is quietly intense, with concentrated, exotic fruit. It has focused acidity, a satiny texture and a very long, ethereal finish with fantastic perfume.
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Wine Enthusiast
Using the so-called black Chardonnay technique (intentional oxidation during fermentation), Double Zero finds the sweet spot between sharp tasting young fruit and softer, creamier aged wines. Here the spicy clove highlights are bright and pure, the fresh cut flavors of apricot and melon are clean and tangy, and the aging in 62% new French oak puts a toasty polish on the finish. This is structured for aging, but with ample aeration may be enjoyed immediately. Drink through 2030.
Cellar Selection
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
One of Pinot Noir's most successful New World outposts, the Willamette Valley is the largest and most important AVA in Oregon. With a continental climate moderated by the influence of the Pacific Ocean, it is perfect for cool-climate viticulture and the production of elegant wines.
Mountain ranges bordering three sides of the valley, particularly the Chehalem Mountains, provide the option for higher-elevation vineyard sites.
The valley's three prominent soil types (volcanic, sedimentary and silty, loess) make it unique and create significant differences in wine styles among its vineyards and sub-AVAs. The iron-rich, basalt-based, Jory volcanic soils found commonly in the Dundee Hills are rich in clay and hold water well; the chalky, sedimentary soils of Ribbon Ridge, Yamhill-Carlton and McMinnville encourage complex root systems as vines struggle to search for water and minerals. In the most southern stretch of the Willamette, the Eola-Amity Hills sub-AVA soils are mixed, shallow and well-drained. The Hills' close proximity to the Van Duzer Corridor (which became its own appellation as of 2019) also creates grapes with great concentration and firm acidity, leading to wines that perfectly express both power and grace.
Though Pinot noir enjoys the limelight here, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay also thrive in the Willamette. Increasing curiosity has risen recently in the potential of others like Grüner Veltliner, Chenin Blanc and Gamay.