We are extremely pleased to present our very ï¬rst Westside
Farms Chardonnay produced under the Alysian label. Though new to
Alysian, this is certainly not a new vineyard for our winemaker
Gary Farrell. In fact, he produced designated wines from this
vineyard under his namesake brand for nearly 20 years. Gary
considers the Chardonnay from Westside Farms to be “of benchmark
quality and status”; with a fruit proï¬le so pure and regionally
correct, it sets the standard for what (in his opinion) other
Russian River Valley Chardonnays should strive to be.
Thanks to his longstanding relationship with the vineyard’s
owners (Ron and Pam Kaiser) and their very capable vineyard
management team headed by Kevin Barr, Gary was able to negotiate
for the purchase of a few tons of grapes from the highly acclaimed
(and highly allocated) Block 3. This 20+ year old block was planted
by Kevin Barr to Clone 4 on AXR rootstock, and continues to dazzle
winemakers with its generosity of fruit and extraordinarily high
levels of mouthwatering natural acidity.
VINTAGE SUMMARY
After a long, wet winter, vines were slow to awaken to the
cool spring of 2009. The growing season remained cool and steady in
the Russian River Valley, with near-perfect conditions, very few
heat spikes and no precipitation during July, August or September.
This pattern remained intact throughout the Pinot Noir and
Chardonnay growing season, resulting in wonderfully clean,
flavorful fruit with tremendous acidity.
On October 13 (well after completion of our grape harvest), six
inches of rain fell on Sonoma and Napa counties. This was a
devastating blow to the late-ripening varietals (Cabernet
Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah) not yet harvested. Many winemakers
evaluate the vintage in two parts; the great wines produced from
pre-storm grapes and everything else. Generally speaking, look for
this to be a great vintage for Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs from
Sonoma and Napa, but “spotty” for other varietals.
WINEMAKER NOTES
This Chardonnay never strays from its sublime identiï¬cation
of place; the gravely banks of the Russian River along Westside
Road in western Sonoma County. Though this is arguably the most
famous wine road in America, the vineyard’s address isn’t the only
shining star here. Westside Farms (again) delivers a wine that is
remarkably ï¬rm in stature, while at the same time boasting
tremendous abundance in both fruit and texture. It is wildly
refreshing on the palate, with an exotic array of mango, lime and
honey supported beautifully by a ï¬ne streak of minerality. It all
culminates becomes succulent and juicy through the remarkably
long ï¬nish. All you need is a glass of this Chardonnay, a fresh
green salad, a nice helping of spicy brown rice and a beautifully
grilled, medium-rare Alaskan halibut steak…and all will be good in
the world (at least temporarily).
CELLAR NOTES
Vineyards and Clones
Westside Farms Block 3
Clone 4
Harvest Information
Harvest date: September 16
Hand harvest at 6:00 AM
Hand sorted in vineyard
Average brix: 24.1 degrees
Grape Processing
Cold fruit processed early AM
Hand sorted prior to pressing
Fermentation
100% barrel fermented
35% ML fermentation (in barrel)
Yeast: Three cultured strains
Duration: 20 days
Barrel Program
100% French oak
Francois Freres, Rousseau
35% new
65% one and two year old
9 months in barrel
Finished Wine
Alcohol: 14.4% by volume
Titratable acidity: 7.4 gm/L
pH: 3.47
Bottling date: June 6, 2010
Production: 160 cases (9 liter equivalent)