Racines Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay 2020  £64.60

Racines Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay

A combination of world-famous vineyards and world-class winemaking makes Racines one of California’s most exciting, modern winemaking projects. It is a collaboration between Etienne de Montille of Domaine de Montille in Volnay and his Californian-born winemaker Brian Sieve. In 2016, Etienne and Brian spent months travelling across the Golden State in search of its finest vineyard sites. They aimed to discover the Golden State’s great Chardonnay and Pinot Noir producers and get to know its innumerable appellations. After hundreds of tastings and encounters, they were eventually captivated by Santa Barbara County and its combination of ambitious young winemakers and historic vineyards such as ‘Bien Nacido’ and ‘Sanford & Benedict’.

Together, they inevitably sought out highly coveted sites in the Santa Rita Hills for their new project ‘Racines’, whose first vintage was in 2017. The wines hail from vineyards across the Santa Rita Hills appellation, planted on soil types ranging from sandy and clay loams to quartz and shale. The proximity of the Pacific Ocean (just 10km away) imparts a coolness and clarity to the wines. Most of the fruit is sourced from a long-term lease of the ‘Wenzlau’ vineyard. However, Racines also work with growers in ‘Sanford & Benedict’, ‘Bentrock’ and ‘La Rinconada’ as well as the ‘La Mesa’ vineyard, which comprises part of Domaine de la Côte’s prized estate.

The fruit is sourced from the famous Sanford & Benedict Vineyard, specifically the historic parcel of original plantings dating back to 1972. These Chardonnay vines are the oldest vines in the Santa Rita Hills and are situated on a north-facing slope, with soils consisting of shale and chert.

The wines were fermented in a combination of 500L puncheons and 228L barriques, resulting in about 10% oak. After 11 months in barrel, the wines and lees were moved to stainless steel tanks for an additional 5 months of cellaring.

Lemon confit, white flowers, mint and white pepper. A creamy, layered wine with brightness and energy.