Chardonnay ‘Highland’ Santa Lucia Highlands

Winemaker

Sam Smith

Appellation

Santa Lucia Highlands

Varieties

Chardonnay

Viticulture

Grapes are a combination of estate and sourced fruit, grown on slopes of 150m-550m in elevation with a Southeast facing exposition. The vines are VSP trained and are 20 years old on average. Harvest takes place by hand with an average yield of 3 tons/acre.

Terroir

The soil is comprised of Chualar & Arroyo Seco loams.

Ratings & Reviews

Vineyard

The 65 acre property of Morgan Winery is on a southeastern facing "bench" of the Santa Lucia mountain range, sloping from 150" to 550' elevation and the vines are 18 years old on average. Prior to purchase in 1996, the ranch was used for cattle grazing and row crop production (sugar beets, dry beans). At the time of purchase, the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA had very recently been established and was relatively unknown. The soils on the ranch were weak, depleted of nutrients; Dan's interest in responsible farming led to the Double L's organic certification in 2001. The vineyard now holds both sustainability and organic certifications

Vinification

After harvest, the grapes undergo a direct press and the juice is transferred to barrels for fermentation. A blend of 50% selected yeast and 50% ambient yeast is used to begin the fermentation process, which will last about 15 days. 100% of the juice is fermented with the lees, but just 75% goes through malolactic fermentation. Total Sulfite count is 32 mg/L. Light filtration takes place prior to aging.

Aging

The wine is aged for 8 months in 60-gallon French oak barrels. Then, the wine ages for 4-10 more months in bottle prior to release.