Winemaker Notes
This Monterey Chardonnay is whole cluster pressed, a gentle process which avoids tearing the grapeskin, often a source of harsh flavors and tannins. The juice is barrel fermented and sur lie aged for seven anda half months. Every two weeks Carmel Road's cellar crew stirred the lees to incorporate more of their creamy, toastyflavor. 100% of the wine underwent malolactic fermentation for buttery richness.
"A beautiful nose of ripe lemon sorbet, white peach and lilac. Flavors ofcitrus and pear are accented with a light minerality. Orange blossom and creamhighlight the finish. The palate is so soft the wine just melts in your mouth."
-Ivan Giotenov, Winemaker
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.
The largest and perhaps most varied of California’s wine-growing regions, the Central Coast produces a good majority of the state's wine. This vast California wine district stretches from San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara along the coast, and reaches inland nearly all the way to the Central Valley.
Encompassing an extremely diverse array of climates, soil types and wine styles, it contains many smaller sub-AVAs, including San Francisco Bay, Monterey, the Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley.
While the Central Coast California wine region could probably support almost any major grape varietiy, it is famous for a few Central Coast reds and whites. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are among the major ones. The Central Coast is home to many of the state's small, artisanal wineries crafting unique, high-quality wines, as well as larger producers also making exceptional wines.