Model Farm Chardonnay PM Staiger Vineyard 2019 Santa Cruz Mountains

- 94+ Punkte, View from the Cellar, John Gilman: „These chardonnay vines were planted in 1973 on their own rootstocks, on a steep, southwest-facing slope that sits on a combination of sandstone and shale, one thousand feet above the San Lorenzo Valley. The cuttings were from old Wente clones back in 1973, and today the vineyard gets plenty of morning and late day fog to moderate its temperatures during the growing season. The wine is barrel-fermented in older casks with indigenous yeasts, aged in these barrels for a year and the racked to stainless steel tanks for six months of finishing elevage. The 2019 version comes in at 12.7 percent octane and delivers a beautifully refined bouquet of pear, lemon, elder flowers, a complex base of minerality, citrus zest and a whisper of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is vibrant, full-bodied and impeccably balanced, with a lovely core and soil signature, zesty acids and excellent focus and grip on the long, pure and complex finish. This is more accessible out of the blocks than previous chardonnays that Joanna and Sean have released from the Wood Valley Vineyard, which could prove to make holding onto this beautiful wine in the cellar quite difficult! Like all of the Model Farm wines, it is built to age and will be infinitely more enjoyable to drink if given some bottle age, but good luck exercising the self-control needed! ” 2021-2040

- 93 Punkte, VINOUS, Antonio Galloni: „The 2019 Chardonnay P-M Staiger Vineyard is a gorgeous, expressive wine fram a site in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Crushed rock, slate, sage, mint, chamomile, lemon peel and a touch of reduction infuse the 2019 with layers of depth. The 2019 is vivid an beautifully layered from start to finish.“
Drinking Window: 2022-2029