Neyers Carneros Chardonnay 2021

Our Carneros District Chardonnay comes from “Shot-Wente selection” grapesgrown on three vineyards: the Jim and Del Yamakawa Ranch on WatmaughRoad; the Sangiacomo Family Green Acres Vineyard parcel on Hwy 121 plantedin 1994; the Donnell sisters El Novillero Vineyard at the intersection ofHighways 121 and 116, in the hills at the western-most boundary of theCarneros AVA. All three vineyards are in the cool-weather area of Carneros,close to the San Francisco Bay, so ripening is slow and natural fruit acidity ishigh, making for a wine both fresh and long-lived. “Shot-Wente” is an heirloomChardonnay selection. It developed naturally in the Wente Brothers LivermoreValley vine nursery in the early 1930’s. The clusters are smaller than normal forChardonnay—as are the individual grapes—giving them increased skin surfacerelative to the juice. That enhanced ratio makes the wine especially flavorful, sodespite the small yields the selection was popular with California winemakersin the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. It is now making a comeback in popularity, as it hasshown a resistance to several new diseases that afflict vines that were developedthrough clonal breeding.