Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesLeading off the Chardonnay, the 2020 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills offers a gorgeous perfumed of orange blossom, honeyed almonds, brioche, and lemon oil. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and concentrated, with great acidity and a distinct sense of minerality on the palate, this thrilling, deep, layered, singular Chardonnay will keep for over a decade.
The 2020 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills begins with a touch of matchstick reduction, requiring plenty of aeration. It unfolds slowly to warm white peaches and singular wafts of lychee and dried tarragon, an intriguing interplay of exoticism and savory reduction. The palate is still youthfully coiled with linear acidity, anchoring texture and an evolving finish that hints at more to come. Give it a few years in bottle to unwind. Best after 2022.
So much energy and brightness to this with sliced lemon and lightly ripe apple. Lime and fresh ginger. Salty. Rich and ripe yet taut on the finish.
Shows a concentrated and mouthwatering mix of pineapple, ruby grapefruit and yuzu fruit flavors, with notes of crunchy Honeycrisp apple, saline and matcha lingering on the finish. Drink now.
Brewer-Clifton believes the geographic, geologic and climatic uniqueness of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation provides an ideal place to grow chardonnay and pinot noir grapes of intensity, complexity and specificity. This is why Founder and Winemaker Greg Brewer, Wine Enthusiast’s 2020 Winemaker of the Year, has dedicated his life to this region. Within this appellation, each vineyard carries its own imprint. The Brewer-Clifton mission and passion is to present wines that convey the characteristics inherent to each of these sites, with uncompromising quality.
Brewer–Clifton has the utmost respect for nature. They believe when working with a product of nature, it is necessary to maintain an awareness of the elements and phenomena sometimes beyond their understanding and control. As such, any intervention in the natural evolution of the product must be carried out with the utmost attentiveness and care.
A superior source of California Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills is the coolest, westernmost sub-region of the larger Santa Ynez Valley appellation within Santa Barbara County. This relatively new AVA is unquestionably one to keep an eye on.
The climate of Sta. Rita Hills is a natural match for Chardonnay and Pinot noir, thanks to the crisp ocean breezes and well-drained, limestone-rich calcareous soil. Here, grapes ripen just enough, while retaining brisk acidity and harmonious balance.
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.