2021 Lenné Chardonnay
There is no sales tax on orders shipped to Oregon addresses.
A beautiful example of premium Willamette Valley Chardonnay, with bright fruit notes and a crisp acidity. Smooth and velvety, but never buttery on the finish, unlike hotter climate Chardonnays.
The natural pear aromatic from the vineyard shines through, along with vanilla and brioche aromatics. The mouthfeel is bright and crisp. Flavors include green apple, and Bosc pear, with a lemon creme texture on the finish. In the cellar it will mellow and evolve for at least a decade.
We have less than an acre of Chardonnay planted on our vineyard, and produce only a couple of hundred cases a year. All of our Chardonnay is aged in French oak puncheons; 500 liter barrels that are about 2.5x the capacity of a normal 60 gallon wine barrel. We use one new and one neutral puncheon each year. The larger barrels provide a bit less oak contact, giving our Chardonnay a beautiful creamy note, while keeping the wine crisp and bright, and never buttery.
Lenne's Chardonnay is made by winemaker Drew Voit, in collaboration with our winemaker Steve Lutz.
Vintage Notes
The 2021 growing season was long and hot, with a larger than average fruit set that paired beautifully with the lengthy ripening season. We saw a record heat bubble in late June with temps over 114 degrees! Thankfully that happened in June and not August, and the tiny grapes were not impacted by the brief event. The rest of the summer was hot, but not excessively, and we saw our typical cooling in September, allowing for longer hang time. On the whole it was one of the best vintages in the history of the Willamette Valley.
