2014 Morlet Family Vineyards Ma Princesse Chardonnay

Morlet Family Vineyards in St. Helena is truly a Franco-American enterprise. The estate was founded in 2006 when Luc and Jodie Morlet began making their own wine. But the roots of the estate go back generations to the Champagne region of France, where Luc Morlet grew up working on his family’s Pinot Noir and Champagne domaine. Luc later earned degrees in enology and business, and worked at wine estates in all the regions of France before moving to Napa Valley in 1993 to work as a winemaker. He met and married Jodi, a Californian, and worked for Napa’s Newton Vineyard and Peter Michael Winery before starting his own production. The Morlets own eight acres and have leases on another 12 acres. Their very limited production Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon have won outstanding reviews from wine writers. Robert M. Parker Jr. rated a recent Morlet Chardonnay at 96-100 pts and said it “may be one of the all-time great Chardonnays ever made in California.”

Russian River Valley AVA is named for the river that meanders from Mendocino County in the north until it finally runs into the Pacific Ocean north of San Francisco. The AVA is cool thanks to its proximity to the northern California coast and the river, and grape growers must learn to deal with regular fog. Nevertheless in recent decades the AVA has become one of the best in the state, meaning that its wines often earn excellent reviews and have considerable cachet. The AVA status was awarded in 1983 and today the appellation has 15,000 vineyard acres. Chardonnay is the most widely planted grape though Pinot Noir has also been very successful in recent decades. Russian River Valley Pinot Noir are known for being rich, lush and filled with concentrated fruit and berry flavors. Russian River Pinot Noirs are today considered some of the best domestic Pinot Noirs.

This white variety originated in Burgundy, but is now grown around the world. Its flexibility to thrive in many regions translates to wide flavor profile in the market. Chardonnay is commonly used in making Champagne and sparkling wines.