Charval 2010

A namesake drawn from a steel-aged Chardonnay blend is now a delightfully versatile blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris. Aromas of juicy pear and golden delicious apple introduce a vibrant off-dry palate with a balanced acidity throughout. This white is refreshing alone or with a variety of spicy dishes.  Perfect for grilling out or catering to large groups with diverse dishes and tastes!

2.8 ton / acre average Our Pinot Gris Grapes are sourced from the Pond Block of our estate vineyard. The pond block has the deepest and best drained soils in the Tarara Vineyard. These characteristics help with root development and maintain aromatic concentration in the fruit. The pond block is the coolest location at Tarara with morning shade from the adjoining forest. This helps us hang the fruit further into the growing season to maximize flavor development while also preserving our acidity. The pond block is best suited to our aromatic varieties, Viognier and Pinot Gris. The Pinot Gris is planted oriented in two different ways. Our North/South oriented rows enjoy more sunshine allowing more tropical and honey like characters in the wine. The East/West oriented rows allow for better acid structure and citrus notes. Together they complement each other creating a more complex wine. The Chardonnay for the Charval came from five different areas. The first comes from a vineyard called Wild Meadow in the Piedmont of Loudoun just outside Hillsborough and is the Chardonnay Musque clone and is 14% of the blend. It is a south east facing slope with clay soils in the Blue Ridge Mountains. This portion was harvested for its ripe tropical flavor profile and backbone of acidity. The second Chardonnay 24% of the blend comes from a high elevation 1100 feet vineyard outside Winchester called Indian Springs and is characterized by its minerality and crisp acidity. The third Chardonnay (9%) comes from Mountainview Vineyard in Roanoke county at 1300 feet elevation with stony soils and also has great minerality, but has a riper and softer mouth feel then Indian Springs. The last two Chardonnay selections come from our estate vineyard Nevaeh from the Road and Hill Blocks. The Hill is characterized by its deeper soils and limestone deposits as well as its south facing slope. It get’s our ripest Chardonnay with gobs of fruit, but a nice backbone of acidity and a streak of loamy character. The Road vineyard is extremely hot and creates wines with a fat mouth feel and more citrus notes. The Viognier for the Charval came from Eagle Tree Vineyard about 2 miles from Tarara as the crow flies. The vineyard is just off the Potomac with deeper clay soils and good air movement that creates Viognier with ripe tropical notes and a soft lush palate. The 2009 Vintage was full of challenges that left us with concern for many varieties. We were tested on our patience, faith in mother nature and our quest for quality. Most of the summer was cool and wet with the exception of August. There was a moist spring, drying up just in time for bloom to assure a healthy size crop. We were forced to strongly thin the crop to maximize ripeness later in the year by over 50% in several cases. Viognier was the only variety that started with a low crop as its bloom was too wet and fruit set was uneven creating inner cluster thinning and sorting to be crucial at harvest. Mid July gave us a nasty storm that dropped nickel size hail on our vineyard for 4-5 minutes and winds that severely damaged many shoots. The lowering in the crop was not all bad and the dry two weeks post the storm allowed for the fruit to dry up and not be plagued by rot. August was hot and dry allowing the fruit to enter the harvest period ripening at a better rate. Through September and October it was all about waiting for the best physiological ripeness of the grapes. At times deer and potential weather tempted us to harvest early, but we stayed on course and allowed the flavors to ripen beautifully. Overall the 2009 vintage gave us a really neat crop for Jon and me coming from Canada. It gave us fruit characteristic to what we were used to with ripe flavors at higher acidities and lower alcohols. The wines of 2009 will be marked by their elegance more so then their power.

The fruit was immediately chilled after harvest in order to press the fruit at 32 degrees F. This helps the integrity of the fruit and keeps away any phenolic or color (from the Pinot Gris) extraction from the skins and seeds. The fruit was hand sorted by the winemaker and whole bunch pressed in an anaerobic environment. This process ensured only the best bunches were allowed into the fermentation. The anaerobic environment created with dry ice ensured that no aromatics were oxidized out prior to the ferment. After pressing at a maximum pressure of 1.2 bar to be certain to leave all seeds intact and not over extract the juice was settled for 48 hours at 32 degrees F. The juice was then racked for fermentation. A portion of the Chardonnay and all of the Viognier of this wine was fermented en barriques. The remainder was fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine was fermented on native yeast to get a better understanding of the terroir of each vineyard block and to create more complexity from the fruit. Post fermentation of the stainless steel portions were racked twice before being blended. The barrel fermented portion was racked once into tank, then once back to barrel. After six months the barrels were blended together with the wine in stainless steel to create a more complex and developed wine. The wine has been cold and heat stabilized and filtered. The wine was bottled on April 22,2010.

This wine screams for Seared Sea Scallops in a citrus beurre blanc served over lemon zest risotto and asparagus spears with Amish butter and pine nuts. It is also the perfect match for a hot summer’s day relaxing with friends or as an aperitif.

2500 cases