2023 Gravel Road Chardonnay

ABOUT GRAVEL ROAD CHARDONNAY

Gravel Road Chardonnay is a blend of our three favorite Chardonnay vineyards in the Willamette Valley: Gran Moraine, Marsh Estate, and Knudsen Vineyards. The first two vineyards grow in low to mid elevation, in sandstone-shale derived soils that provide a lovely creamy texture. While Knudsen Vineyards is located at a high elevation in volcanic derived soil that adds a racy minerality to this unique Chardonnay.

WINEMAKING PROCESS

ROCO Chardonnay is handpicked and then chilled overnight at 38˚ F in a large storage room. The chilled bunches are then pressed and the juice is sent to a tank. After settling in tank, the juice is inoculated and racked to neutral oak where it completes fermentation. After primary fermentation is complete, the young wine goes through malolactic fermentation in order to soften the acidity and to add further complexity. Next, the wines are racked to a mix of new and neutral French oak. There they rest for at least five months before bottling.

2023 VINTAGE NOTES

After a cold, snowy, and wet winter, we experienced a cold and wet early spring. It was starting to look like another late bloom, however around May 10th, the rain stopped, and the sun came out. This warm and dry weather signaled the vines to start budding, and it led to the shortest period of bud break to bloom that we have ever seen in the Willamette Valley. 

The other remarkable aspect of this growing  season was the extended period of dry weather. We experienced a full 97 days of no precipitation! Dry soils challenge the vines to supply needed nutrition into the fruit at critical periods like veraison. Nutrition is critical for wine grapes to ripen with flavor and aromas, not just sugar. Successful growers farmed to preserve soil moisture and used drip irrigation at crucial moments in the vines’ development. We like to keep a vine’s leaves green and facing the beautiful Willamette Valley Summer sunshine!

WINEMAKER'S TASTING NOTES