Rudius Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard 2014

Among new-world Chardonnay sites, Hyde Vineyard is unmatched in its ability to produce a wine that is classical in style but also strongly challenges the status quo. The Robert Young selection - a unique off-shoot of the revered Wente clone - produces focused, bright fruit with a refreshing acidity, uncommon in California Chardonnays. The loamy, mineral rich soils in this block of Hyde further encourage this already shy-yielding clone to struggle throughout the growing season, intensifying the fruit’s high-tone character. Larry Hyde and sons have worked this land since the 1970s, painstakingly maintaining optimal soil health and continually cultivating only the best varietals and clones, ideally suited to their vineyard’s unique location in Carneros. Intensely warm days and cool nights define this region of the Napa Valley. The coastal winds driven through the Petaluma Gap and across the rolling hills of Carneros each afternoon create rare growing conditions, resulting in fruit that is both perfectly ripe and still beautiful fresh at harvest. We could not be more thrilled to work with Napa Valley Chardonnay such as this, which offers us the chance to produce a wine that truly pays homage to our favorites bottlings from the old-world.