La Clarine Farm 2022 White Wine, Sierra Foothills
Item Number: 18523
UPC: None
Country: USA
Region: California
Sub Region: Sierra Foothills
Appellation/AVA: El Dorado
Estate Grown Wine: No
Vineyard Designation: Fenaughty Vineyard
Vintage: 2022
Grape(s): 100% Vermentino
Type: Wine - White
Bottle Size: 750 ml
Pack: 12
Closure: Screw Cap
Alc by Vol(%): 13.5
Viticulture: Practicing Organic
Soil Type: Volcanic
Case Production: 59
Winemaker Notes by Hank Beckmeyer:
"I've had my eye on this plot of Vermentino, growing in the Fenaughty Vineyard, for years. All of the fruit was going to two well known wineries in the Bay Area, but every year I would express my interest. In 2022, I got my wish.
I think Vermentino has a bright future in the Sierra Foothills. There is not much planted now, but more and more little plots are being put in, as people try it out. It would, I had figured, do especially well on our soils of volcanic origin. I was right!
Known in Italy, and also in Southeast France (where it goes by the name “Rolle”), the Foothills expression is more structured than the “Rolle” versions, which tend towards wide/broad wines of low acidity. It is very aromatic here, very floral, like springtime in a glass. We also get a pretty intense minerality in our version. I like it as lot.
2022 was another tricky harvest – two severe frosts cut the crop levels down 50-80% in most places, an intense heat wave at the very start of harvest stopped all picking for us for a while (I can't feel good about folks picking grapes in 110 degree heat), and a large wildfire to our north blanketed us in smoke for 2 days (shades of 2021). We worked around all of this, and managed to make some pretty delicious wines in 2022. Not much, but delicious.
We decided to bottle this Vermentino a little early to capture a bit of the residual CO2 still in the wine. It adds a freshness, and helps lift all those beautiful aromas. It also makes the wine very versatile with food. The low yields add in a richer texture on the mid-palate. Bottled unfined and unfiltered."