Baer Winery “Shard” Chardonnay
WHY WE LOVE IT
- Shard is 100% unoaked.
- Sourced from Stillwater Creek Vineyard in the Royal Slope AVA, a high elevation certified sustainable grower.blocks that were planted in 2004. It is a blend
- It is a blend of 3 different Chardonnay clones, one clone from Champagne, one clone from Burgundy and one clone originally from Burgundy brought to the US by the Wente family of California and then propagated in Prosser, WA. The different clones add depth and complexity to the blend.
- Erica Orr is the winemaker.
Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Elaboration: Hand picked. Aged in stainless steel. The goal is to respect the clean purity of fruit and not obscure the personality of the chardonnay with oak barrels or malolactic fermentation.
Tasting Notes: Lively and fresh, this all-stainless steel Chardonnay allows the Stillwater Creek fruit to shine. Crunchy green apple notes are punctuated by bright citrus zest. Sur lie aging with regular batonnage rounds out the mouth feel.
PRESS
2024 – 92 Owen Bargreen
PRODUCER BACKGROUND
Winemaker Lance Baer founded Baer Winery in 2000 with a single passion—to bring something unique to Woodinville. After years of working with some of the most prestigious wineries in the area, Lance wanted to take his winemaking skills in his own direction. Lance succeeded in handcrafting blends distinctly his own, and in April 2003 the first vintage of the winery’s signature blend, Ursa, was released. Ursa, a feminine expression of red wine, predominantly Merlot and Cabernet Franc, was soon followed by Arctos, a bolder Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend.
As operations moved from an apartment in Redmond to a converted property on six rural acres in Woodinville, the winery was able to grow in production. Lance’s passion went from just 200 cases in 2003 to over 3,000 cases. In late 2007, Baer Winery moved into the popular warehouse wine complex near downtown Woodinville – a move which has allowed them to grow to producing approximately 3,500 cases per year, with a view to continuing to increase to 5,000.
Sadly, founder, son, brother and friend, Lance Baer, passed away in May of 2007, at the age of 39. But the Baer family, Lisa and Les, with the expertise of consulting winemaker Erica Orr, are continuing to produce the wines that Lance was devoted to creating, as well as continuing to evolve and add new blends to the winery’s line-up.