2017 Chardonnay Martinelli Road

I have said it before, but it bears repeating. The Martinellis are one of the great families in American wine. Grape growers and farmers first and foremost, the Martinellis sell the majority of the fruit they produce, and only bottle a small amount of wine under their own label. A total focus on the land and farming is at the core of what makes these wines special. The wines are rich and textured, as they have always been, but in recent years, the Martinellis have gradually given their wines a bit more energy and freshness. The Syrahs are good examples. Today the Syrahs get more aeration in vinification, a choice made to bring out the aromatics, while new oak has come down. I especially like the 2018 Pinots in this range. Harvest was a whopping three and half weeks later than in 2017. The Pinots saw about five days of cold soak and a total of 14 days on the skins, with about 50% new oak.