Olivet Lane Chardonnays from Pellegrini Winery

2021 Olivet Lane Unoaked Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast

An exemplary vintage, the 2021 Olivet Lane Unoaked Chardonnay bursts with aroma of pear, ginger, and hay straw. On the tongue, zippy lemon curd, passionfruit, and papaya highlight the grandiose mouth feel and length of finish.

Vineyard Notes

The Olivet Lane Vineyard is a heritage site, with the distinction of being among the earliest plantings of Pinot noir in the Russian River Valley. The vineyard was established in 1975 by the Pellegrini family, with 30 acres planted to heirloom clone Old Wente Chardonnay. The Olivet Lane Vineyard features an undulating benchland of well-drained, gravelly, clay loam soil. Located just east of the Laguna de Santa Rosa, the vineyard is situated in the heart of Russian River Valley Appellation. The fog that defines our growing region lingers in our low-elevation neighborhood, protecting it under a cool white blanket from evening through the morning. These long, cool nights retain natural acidity in the grapes and support the distinctive bright fruit character of the wines.

Winemaking Notes

Our Olivet Lane Unoaked Chardonnay is meant for one reason and one reason alone, to provide an unbiased demonstration of the beauty and grace of Chardonnay on this heritage vineyard. We utilize stainless steel drums rather than tanks for fermentation, allowing us to experiment with different yeasts for complexity of flavor and sur lie aging methods for enhanced texture. For all intents and purposes, this wine is made in the exact same fashion as our classic Olivet Lane Chardonnay with 2 points of variation: stainless steel drums instead of oak, and no malolactic conversion. The ability to fully incorporate lees into the wine with a barrel stirring wand, which is not an option with tank fermentations, lends to immense texture and length in the back of the pallet, while engulfing the front and mid palate with fruit flavors.

Specs

• Food Pairing Suggestion: Grilled trout with ginger and scallion, or salad niçoise.
• Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
• AVA: Russian River Valley
• Aging: 10 months in steel drum & tank
• Clone: Old Wente
• Soil: Gravelly, clay loam
• Alcohol: 13.6%
• TA: 7.31 g/L
• pH: 3.62
• Harvested: September 28, 2021
• Bottled: July 27, 2022

2018 Olivet Lane Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County

Hand-crafted to perfection, our Olivet Lane Chardonnay involves modern-day winemaking techniques that capture the distinct characteristics of our historic estate vineyard.

Tasting Notes

Truly a bounty of complexity, the 2018 Olivet Lane Chardonnay jumps into the nose with lemon verbena, pear, sage, nutmeg, and toasted coconut. Upon the first sip, pralines, caramel, baked apples, and star anise ring in symphony with the bright acid, conveying lemon curd, granny smith apple, and white peach.

Winemaker Notes

2018 proved to be a very challenging vintage, but rewarding flavors awaited those who were patient. A cool late summer and fall delayed ripening, and late September rain, left many scrambling to pick their fruit early. But no more rain came until just before Thanksgiving, allowing additional hangtime to further develop flavors. This Chardonnay was split into three distinct fermentation lots, utilizing a selection of different yeasts to create layers of flavors and aromas. Bottling for this lot was delayed due to Covid 19, therefore adding an additional 4 months to its age time, which further developed barrel-driven characteristics and lengthened the finish of this Chardonnay.

Specs

• Food Pairing Notes: Crepes Savoyarde, also great with medium soft cheese and quince paste.
• Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
• Appellation: Russian River Valley
• Vineyard Designation: Olivet Lane Vineyard
• Harvest Date: October 20, 2018
• TA: 5.86 g/L
• pH: 3.48
• Aging: 21 months in French Oak, 31% New
• Clone: Old Wente
• Soil: Gravelly, clay loam
• Alcohol: 14.2%
• Bottling Date: July 29, 2020
• Vegan Friendly

What’s Included

6-bottles:

• 3x - 2021 Olivet Lane Unoaked Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast
• 3x - 2018 Olivet Lane Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County

Case:

• 6x - 2021 Olivet Lane Unoaked Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast
• 6x - 2018 Olivet Lane Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County

Price Comparison

Unoaked Chardonnay - $50
Chardonnay - $65/bottle — not for sale on winery website

About The Winery

• Winery: Pellegrini Winery
• Owners: The Pellegrini Family
• Founded: 1975
• Location: Santa Rosa, CA

The Pellegrini Family has been associated with every tier of the wine business since the early part of the 20th Century — as wine producers, grape sellers, importers, and wholesale distributors. In 1915, Nello Pellegrini immigrated from Italy, eventually landing in the Santa Rosa Plains, a sister city to his home town of Lucca, Tuscany. In 1925, the first Pellegrini wine was made from Sonoma County grapes in a gravity run winery in San Francisco. Upon the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, they were issued Winegrower License No.4.

In 1972, Vincent & Aida Pellegrini purchased a 70-acre plum and apple orchard on West Olivet Road in the Santa Rosa Plains. The first vines Pinot Noir and Chardonnay were planted in 1975, using heirloom Martini and Wente Clones respectively, establishing Olivet Lane Vineyard as one of the first Pinot Noir pioneers in Russian River Valley.

The Russian River Valley In the early 19th century, immigrants from Mediterranean countries descended upon the region, planting the first vineyards. Its proximity to the coastal influences of the Pacific Ocean makes it ideal for the growing of Pinot Noir. The region officially gained AVA status in 1983, recognizing this area as one of the premier unique cool climate growing regions in Sonoma County & California.

50 years after its first vines were planted, Olivet Lane is home to the region’s oldest still-producing Pinot Noir vines. The secret to its longevity is being blessed by the perfect combination of terroir and climate. Widely recognized as a prime example of the classic style of Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, Olivet Lane has been a prized grape source for many of the Valley’s Pinot Noir luminaries — Williams Selyem, Merry Edwards, Gary Farrell, MacRostie — in addition to our own acclaimed Olivet Lane Vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and 9 other distinctly unique wines from these grapes.

Pellegrini Wines are produced from grapes sourced from within Sonoma County, and have earned a reputation for consistent quality. In addition to R.R.V. appellation blends, under our Single Vineyard Selections we produce small lots of vineyard & varietal designated wine from unique vineyards, farmed by farmers we enjoy partnering on. Here, we source varietals such as Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc, and Carignane. Our winemaking style emphasizes balance over power and exhibits regional characteristics representative of each appellation.

Available States

AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI

Estimated Delivery

Monday, Oct 19 - Thursday, Oct 22