Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesAged 10 months in about 15% new oak, the 2017 Chardonnay gives scents of apple pie, Meyer lemon and quince with notes of crushed stone, toast and Greek yogurt. Light to medium-bodied and silky, it has restrained, minerally fruits with juicy acidity and a long finish. This could use another year in bottle to put on a touch of weight.
Delicately spirited, with lively apple, pear and spice flavors that build toward a polished finish. Drink now.
Drouhin Oregon Roserock is the newest chapter in the Drouhin story, extending from Burgundy's Cote d’Or and Chablis, to the Dundee Hills of Oregon, and now Oregon's Eola-Amity Hills.
Drouhin Oregon Roserock continues a four-generation story that began in 1880 when Joseph Drouhin moved from Chablis to Beaune, in the heart of Burgundy.
In Oregon, as in Burgundy, the Drouhin Family farms singular, expressive parcels of land. The Roserock Vineyard sits at the southern tip of the Eola-Amity Hills, in Oregon's Willamette Valley and is marked by volcanic soils, cooler temperatures and an ideal elevation range. Farmed by Phillipe Drouhin, Roserock is certified sustainable.
Running north to south, adjacent to the Willamette River, the Eola-Amity Hills AVA has shallow and well-drained soils created from ancient lava flows (called Jory), marine sediments, rocks and alluvial deposits. These soils force vine roots to dig deep, producing small grapes with great concentration.
Like in the McMinnville sub-AVA, cold Pacific air streams in via the Van Duzer Corridor and assists the maintenance of higher acidity in its grapes. This great concentration, combined with marked acidity, give the Eola-Amity Hills wines—namely Pinot noir—their distinct character. While the region covers 40,000 acres, no more than 1,400 acres are covered in vine.
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.