Mossback Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2016
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Chardonnay from the Aquarius Vineyard in the Russian River Valley produces beautiful floral and honeysuckle aromas with crisp apple and Bartlett pear flavors. A little bit of Matchbook Chardonnay adds some creaminess from French-oak aging.
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Wine & Spirits
Dan Cederquist makes this wine in the Dunnigan Hills, with fruit the Giguire family purchases from Aquarius Vineyards, near Guerneville. He preserves the fresh flavors of the grapes by fermenting them cool, with only a small portion seeing oak. The wine is clean, smoky and firm, with notes of apple skin, tart white cherries and lemongrass. For pan-roasted fish.
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.
A standout region for its decidedly Californian take on Burgundian varieties, the Russian River Valley is named for the eponymous river that flows through it. While there are warm pockets of the AVA, it is mostly a cool-climate growing region thanks to breezes and fog from the nearby Pacific Ocean.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir reign supreme in Russian River, with the best examples demonstrating a unique combination of richness and restraint. The cool weather makes Russian River an ideal AVA for sparkling wine production, utilizing the aforementioned varieties. Zinfandel also performs exceptionally well here. Within the Russian River Valley lie the smaller appellations of Chalk Hill and Green Valley. The former, farther from the ocean, is relatively warm, with a focus on red and white Bordeaux varieties. The latter is the coolest, foggiest parcel of the Russian River Valley and is responsible for outstanding Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.