2020 Johan Vineyards Estate Chardonnay, Van Duzer Corridor, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA

ABOUT THIS WINE

The clonal diversity of this wine brings complexity and balance to the whole. We combined our three high acid clones: Old Wente, l’Espiguette, and musque, with a small amount of Dijon clone fruit – all picked separately, macerated or direct pressed and brought together in tank before going down to barrel. This wine was barrel fermented with native yeasts in french oak (33% new) and aged sur lie for 18 months, allowing it to finish native malolactic fermentation. It was bottled May 3th, 2021 - unfiltered, with a small addition of fine lees, then bottle-aged for another year prior to its release in Fall 2022.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

The Johan Vineyards Estate resides on 175 acres of gently sloping hills in the Mid-Willamette Valley. Adjacent to the Van Duzer Corridor - an East to West running corridor through the coast range - the vineyards benefit from moderating afternoon ocean breezes.

The farming philosophy of Johan Vineyards is to integrate natural farming methods with the most advanced viticultural research to produce the highest possible quality fruit that is true to its terroir. In 2010 Johan Vineyards received both Organic Certification from Stellar Certification Services and Biodynamic Certification from Demeter USA. The winemaking at Johan is now under the guidance of Morgan Beck, who after spending time in various winemaking positions in California, came to Johan in 2015. In the spring of 2020, Morgan was also entrusted to be the General Manager at Johan in addition to her winemaking responsibilities. The wines are made with all native fermentations and a limited use of new French oak. Because of the long, cooler growing season at the site they get very good lignification of the stems and therefore utilize a good percentage of whole cluster in the winemaking as well. The resulting wines are precise with a beautiful purity and a very savory element. The Johan wines are a food friendly, elegant style of Oregon Pinot Noir.