Varietals: 100% Chardonnay

Cases Produced: 350

Residual Sugar: 2 g/L

Total Acidity: 7.58

PH: 2.97

2021 marks the 10th edition of our JCR series Estate-Grown Chardonnay, named in tribute to our co-founder, partner, and family member John Campbell Reston. This also marks the return of the JCR Chardonnay to our portfolio after a brief hiatus in 2020, owing to a smaller-than-usual crop of 2020 Estate Chardonnay. The Chardonnay varietal appeals to both winemakers Dan Sullivan and Lee Baker due to its versatility and unique expressiveness when grown in Prince Edward County.

Tasting Notes: Drink 2023-2025 for fresher style or cellar 2026-2032 for more mature style.

Vineyard: The Rosehall Vineyard planting of Chardonnay totals just over six acres. Originally planted in 2001, additional vines were planted in 2002, 2004, and 2007. These plantings are found in our North Block, South Block, and West block respectively.

Growing Season:

2021 was a growing season marked by several periods of drought stress throughout August with frequent rainy periods during the harvest season of September and early October. Careful management of the vines was a key factor to ensure vineyard health, and special attention was paid to maintain proper air flow throughout the vineyards during the damp Fall.

Harvest: October 6-10, 2022. Our Estate Chardonnay was hand-harvested from October 6th to October 10th, a slightly later pick than usual resulting in excellent flavour maturation. Our yields were slightly higher than average with about a 15-20% increase over average.

Winemaking:

The Chardonnay was destemmed and lightly pressed and transferred to stainless steel tanks to allow the juice to settle. Once clear, the juice was racked into 500L French Oak barrels, 30% new with the balance second fills. Prior to fermentation, each barrel received different yeast treatments in order to build complexity. The wine was fermented and aged in barrel for a total of 16 months with only periodic stirring, before racking back into stainless steel in February 2023. After allowing a month for the wine to rest, our JCR Chardonnay was filtered and bottled in March 2023.