Pale gold color; Meyer lemon, yellow apple, melon, nectarines, citrus, oak spice, brioche on the nose and palate.
Dry; no tannins; moderate crisp acidity. Full, rounded mouthfeel. Organic and sustainably farmed grapes—95 clone Chardonnay—sourced from higher elevations in the Dundee Hills of the Willamette Valley. Fermented and aged in a 50-50 split between neutral French oak and new French oak barrels. The formula delivers fruit and complexity. 12.5% ABV
Tina and Mark Hammond started Privé Vineyard on beautiful property in 2000. In 2020, Piper Rosales-Underbrink found Privé Vineyard and the Hammonds through mutual friends and she quickly became part of the family. The Hammonds wanted to sell and retire. Piper, with her father, had the resources to buy. And so they did amid the high-water mark of the Covid epidemic.
Today, Piper Rosales-Underbrink is the owner and the winemaker and vineyard steward at Privé. Piper grew up on the family’s beef-cattle ranch in Florida, graduated from a liberal arts college in Vermont (where she captained the volleyball team), decided to give winemaking a fling after graduating, went to California and learned winemaking from the ground up. Decided that is what she wanted to do with her life, took classes at UC-Davis to enhance her skills. And now she owns, runs, and makes wonderful wine. Florida cattle girl makes good.
Privé Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay, Dundee Hills AVA 2022 is the flagship chardonnay for Privé. There is limited production, so it may be hard to get but it is worth the effort. Full, round, impressive length. Complex, concentrated flavors. Pair with seafood—meaty fish, halibut, cod; pan-seared salmon. Shellfish—lobster, shrimp, prawns, scallops, crab. Subtly flavored white meat—chicken, pork. Roasted vegetables with caramelized flavors, butternut squash risotto. Cheese—creamy, high-acid goat cheeses, humboldt fog; chèvre; creamy, semi-hard cheeses; triple-crèmes cheese; comté, brie, gouda, aged cheddar. $70
