2012 Pride Chardonnay

2012 Pride Chardonnay

The near-perfect 2012 vintage was a delightful experience.  Our vines set a balanced crop which hung through a long, dry summer and ripened several weeks earlier than the previous year.  The warmer vintage produced a Chardonnay with a full, rich body, while the earlier pick date allowed us to maintain a lively acidity in the finished wine.  Exuberant aromas of Bosc pear, apple, floral notes and a subtle minerality build to a beautiful choreography on the palate, leading to a finish that lingers long in the mouth.  This is a classic chardonnay in its best sense – pure, pretty, and thoroughly charming.  

Three parcels of grapes were hand-harvested on September 19th, October 3rd and October 6th.  The grapes were pressed and then fermented in French oak, about 25% new, and were aged on the lees for nine months.  Individual lots were blended and the finished wine bottled in July 2013.

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Appellation: Napa Valley
Vintage: 2012
Harvest: October 2012
Fermentation: 25% New French
Oak 75% Neutral Oak
Cooperage: 25% New French
Oak 75% Neutral Oak
Blend: 100% Chardonnay
Alcohol: 14.2%
Bottling: July 2013
Production: 1366 cases
Release Date: November 2013
Release Price: $38.00

Reviews

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  • Wine Enthusiast: November 2014 - Rating: 92

    Aged in 25% new French oak, the rest of it neutral, this age-worthy Chardonnay shows refreshing restraint, though it retains plenty of fruit. The aromas tend toward faint caramel and a complex web of acidity and brightness accompanies notes of apple and pear, a long finish capping things off. - V.B.

  • Vinous: November 2013 - Rating: 93

    The 2012 Chardonnay is gorgeous. Lemon oil, pastry, white flowers and butter are all woven together in a pretty, textured Chardonnay endowed with tons of depth and pure structure. Bright veins of acidity support a striking finish laced with nectarine and orange blossom. This is a fabulous showing from Pride.