Beaux Frères Chardonnay Willamette Valley

WHY WE LOVE IT

• The Beaux Frères Chardonnay is a limited cuvée produced from single vineyard, Gran Moraine.
• The vineyard, which is nestled in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA, has an idyllic climate for creating highly complex, age-worthy Chardonnays.
• The grapes are sourced from a plot 2.33 acres in size, with northeast exposure on sedimentary rock soils.

Varietal Composition: 100% Chardonnay

Elaboration: The fruit is pressed in whole clusters with no sulfur added at the press tray, allowing the juice to brown (a technique known as “hyper-oxidation”). This leads to less bitterness and astringency in the final wine and more color stability, by forcing all of the compounds that can cause a wine to turn brown or age prematurely to react and release before the fermentation process begins. After about 24-hours of cold settling, we rack the juice off the heavy lees into barrel where both primary and secondary fermentation will occur. From this point on the wine is handled in a reductive fashion to ensure it is exposed to as little oxygen as possible. The slow and cool fermentation that follows (sometimes up to 11 months) allows the wine to develop and retain floral aromas and texture from lees contact. 16 – 18 months in primarily neutral oak barrels

Tasting Notes: A pure beam of light in the glass with youthful minerality. Lanolin and rain soaked wool aromatics give way to a mouthwatering palate. Finishes with polished sophistication and ample potential for cellaring several years or more.

PRESS

2016 – 95 Vinous

2017 – 92 Wine Advocate | 94 James Suckling | 94 Vinous

2018 – 95 Vinous | 95+ Wine Advocate

2020 – 92 Jeb Dunnuck

PRODUCER BACKGROUND