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Brittan Vineyards, Chardonnay

Oregon, United States 2015 (750mL)
$42.00
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Brittan Vineyards, Chardonnay

The commercial success of Oregon Pinot Gris is very real, but the white wines destined for true greatness in this region are the Chardonnays, the best of which are dead ringers for top white Burgundies. We’ve been talking about Willamette Valley Chardonnay a lot around here, marveling at the number of reference-point bottlings we’ve encountered over the last few vintages.
After 16 years as the winemaker and estate manager at Stags’ Leap Winery in California’s Napa Valley, Robert Brittan acquired a 128-acre hillside outside McMinnville in 2004, the first step toward his dream of making world-class Pinot Noir. Turns out that he, like many of his Willamette Valley neighbors, has found the results with Chardonnay to be just as impressive as those with Pinot Noir. Over the last decade-plus, he and his wife, Ellen, have built up their vineyard plantings to include four acres of Chardonnay; 2015 is the first vintage to showcase a substantial percentage of estate-grown grapes, supplemented by old-vine fruit from the Hyland Vineyard (also McMinnville) and the Anderson Family Vineyard in Dundee Hills. Were you to taste today’s wine blind, you might mistake it for Premier Cru Chassagne-Montrachet, blessed as it is with exquisite texture and tension. It is well-tailored Chardonnay that will age, and it is seriously underpriced relative to what I’d consider its peer group. In short: Willamette Valley is becoming a juggernaut. Let’s hope it doesn’t go to their heads, because these prices cannot be beat. If you drink great white Burgundy often and find prices starting to sting a bit, Oregon Chardonnay may be your new best friend.
When the Brittans first acquired their property, there were 18 acres of existing vineyards, about half of which were subsequently replanted (plantings which included, according to Brittan, one of the first introductions of the “Swan Clone” of Pinot Noir to Oregon). Drawing on some 40 years of viticulture and winemaking experience, Brittan not only oversees his eponymous label but consults to a number of other wineries, including Winderlea, whose excellent Chardonnay we offered recently. Working with the classic Willamette Valley soil mix of volcanic basalt, marine sediments and wind-blown silt, Brittan has shown a deft touch with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir alike, one of a growing number of Oregon producers offering a one-two punch to rival great Burgundy domaines—in every way except price, that is. 

And as we noted in our offer of the Winderlea Chardonnay, Willamette Valley Chardonnay acreage has been in a kind of boom/bust cycle since pioneering vintners like David Lett made it one of the region’s key varieties in the 1960s. By 1986, Chardonnay represented about 23% percent of Oregon’s acreage compared to Pinot Gris’ 3%, but, since then, Pinot Gris surged fairly dramatically while Chardonnay ebbed. According to 2015 statistics, Pinot Gris was the second most-planted variety in the Willamette Valley at 2,463 acres, compared to Chardonnay’s 1,282. Both, incidentally, lost ground to Pinot Noir, which grew to 14,417 acres, more than 72% of the total.

All of which is to say: Chardonnay is rising again, with a critical mass of serious wines to support the renewed interest. Just 240 cases of Brittan’s 2015 were produced, coming in at a modest 13.9% alcohol and reminding everyone here of serious Chassagne-Montrachet. It shines a bright yellow-gold in the glass, with fruit and mineral notes leading the way on the nose (it is aged just 8 months in 35% new French barrels, so the oak component is just a subtle accent note). Aromas of yellow apple, white peach, lemon curd, citrus pith, bread dough, wet stones, and clover honey carry over to the palate, which is medium-plus in body but trembling with freshness and tension along the lines of “reductive” (limiting oxygen during winemaking) styles of winemaking in Burgundy . As noted above, that terrific mix of richness and mineral nerve is what distinguishes the wine; while you’ll be very happy with how it’s drinking now, it should also reward further cellaring (5+ years in my opinion). Pull the cork and quickly decant this wine for about 30-45 minutes before serving in all-purpose whites or larger Burgundy bowls at 50-55 degrees (not too cold!). There are many ways to go with the food pairing here, but the wine’s melding of texture and tanginess has me thinking of pan-fried fish in lemon-butter sauce. Simple and perfect. Enjoy!
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Country
United States
Region
Oregon
Sub-Region
United StatesWillamette Valley
Soil
Sedimentary w/ Volcanic Basalt
Farming
Sustainable
Blend
Chardonnay 100%
Alcohol
13.9
OAK
35% New French
TEMP.
50
Glassware
All-Purpose Whites / Burgundy Stems
Drinking
Now-2022
Decanting
Optional
Pairing
Pan-Fried Flounder in Lemon-Butter Sauce

United States

Washington

Columbia Valley

Like many Washington wines, the “Columbia Valley” indication only tells part of the story: Columbia Valley covers a huge swath of Central
Washington, within which are a wide array of smaller AVAs (appellations).

Oregon

Willamette Valley

Oregon’s Willamette Valley has become an elite winegrowing zone in record time. Pioneering vintner David Lett, of The Eyrie Vineyard, planted the first Pinot Noir in the region in 1965, soon to be followed by a cadre of forward-thinking growers who (correctly) saw their wines as America’s answer to French
Burgundies. Today, the Willamette
Valley is indeed compared favorably to Burgundy, Pinot Noir’s spiritual home. And while Pinot Noir accounts for 64% of Oregon’s vineyard plantings, there are cool-climate whites that must not be missed.

California

Santa Barbara

Among the unique features of Santa Barbara County appellations like Ballard Canyon (a sub-zone of the Santa Ynez Valley AVA), is that it has a cool, Pacific-influenced climate juxtaposed with the intense luminosity of a southerly
latitude (the 34th parallel). Ballard Canyon has a more north-south orientation compared to most Santa Barbara AVAs, with soils of sandy
clay/loam and limestone.

California

Paso Robles

Situated at an elevation of 1,600 feet, it is rooted in soils of sandy loam and falls within the Highlands District of the Paso Robles AVA.

New York

North Fork

Wine growers and producers on Long Island’s North Fork have traditionally compared their terroir to that of Bordeaux and have focused on French varieties such as Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

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