Wine Review:
2022 Peay Vineyards West Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
Sonoma Coast
Though we select the barrels for the Estate Chardonnay first, the Sonoma Coast is not an after-thought, or even a lesser wine. Regional wines – what we refer to here as AVA wines – are usually composites from grapes grown at many sites within an AVA. That is the case for the Peay Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, too. Over 75% of the blend, however, comes from our Estate Vineyard and is farmed to the same exacting standards. The remaining quarter (just a few tons) comes from the Searby Vineyard in the southern portion of the West Sonoma Coast near Occidental. Searby is one of the most highly sought-after vineyards for vineyard-designate Chardonnay in Sonoma County. As it is a touch warmer in Occidental, that portion of the blend offers a little more richness and silkiness while the structure and fruit profile of the Sonoma Coast Chardonnay is very much one of a Peay Estate Chardonnay and has a similar intensity and complexity.
A broader appellation, Chardonnay from the West Sonoma Coast. 20% of this comes from Richardson Ranch, and the rest is estate fruit. Aromatics evoke saline seaspray, generous lemon curd, and hints of cardamom with a laser minerality. This wine is made with the two hectares picked and fermented separately—crystalline brilliance with notes of grilled lemon peel, tangerine, and perfectly paired oak spice.