2023 Chardonnay, Rainmaker Vineyard

Rainmaker Vineyard is located in the Columbia Gorge American Viticultural Area (AVA). This AVA is the western-most AVA east of the Cascade Mountains and is located on the Columbia River. The river’s large body of water, combined with both the weather patterns and elevation, result in much cooler temperatures than we experience in the rest of Eastern Washington. Rainmaker Vineyard is planted from 960 to 1200 feet in elevation, making it an exceptionally cool climate site.

This vintage is our second working with this unique site, wines from which we originally planned to use as blending components, but as it turns out, we really like this wine in its pure form! The uniquely cool growing conditions mean that we may not be able to produce this wine in every vintage, but these conditions result in a style of Chardonnay that is pure, clean, and fresh. This particular vintage has an especially delicate, floral nose. In our staff tasting, we tried it in both traditional Burgundy and Bordeaux glasses. Some of us actually thought it was more expressive in the Bordeaux glass.

To produce this wine, we barrel ferment in one-hundred-percent French oak, though just 25% of the barrels are new. We also use a variety of yeast strains for fermentation, and we utilize only a partial malo-lactic fermentation. These techniques, combined with our cool climate fruit sources, are critical in determining the style of our Chardonnay.

Fragrances of apple blossom and white lilac elevate notes of fresh cut pineapple on the nose. Enrique’s notes include a fruit that is new to us, called a lima. He tells us it is like a lime, but orange in color and sweet in flavor. We haven’t tried one yet, but we are on the lookout for one. The flavors are bright and fruitful, and the mouth-feel is soft, smooth, and coating. Juicy acidity balances a long, tasty finish.  Winemaker, John Abbott