School House – Chardonnay; Napa Valley, California 2019 

 January 20, 2023

By  rackhouse

The vineyard takes its name from the 1880’s one-room school house which graced the property until it was consumed by fire in the mid-1980s. That school house has lent its name to this fascinating and unique property which has quietly produced very small quantities of some of the most sought-after Napa Valley wines since the mid-1950s.

The Chardonnay grape was introduced to the School House vineyard in 1968 when Fred McCrea of Stony Hill vineyard provided budwood for John O. Gantner, who planted it in long terraces on a steeper part of the vineyard; this budwood was originally propagated from the Wente “small berry” Chardonnay clone.

The Chardonnay is harvested in early September. The wine was fermented in seasoned French oak barrels, and aged “sur lie” for 10 months, and stirred weekly. It was then racked and returned to the barrel for an additional 8 months.

This wine is crisp, clean, and assertive with exceptional minerality and ripe pear flavors.

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