La Fenetre A'Cote Chardonnay 2012
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Having apprenticed with some of California and the world’s best winemakers, namely Jim Clendenen (Au Bon Climat), Bob Lindquist (Qupé), and Jim Adelman (Makor) a classic technique and delicate hand is always employed in the winery. All grapes are harvested around 23.5 brix (13.5-14% Alc.). Wherever possible, La Fenêtre is committed to sustainable, organic, and biodynamic vineyard practices. Reds are destemmed into 1½ ton fermenters and punched down by hand until dry. The free run juice is then collected, the must is gently pressed, and the wine is aged in small French barrels for 11-23 months before being bottled. Whites are whole cluster pressed, allowed to settle for one day and fermented in barrel where they undergo the alcoholic fermentation and then 100% Malolactic fermentation. They then spend 11-18 months in small French barrels before being bottled.
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.