Product Overview
Winery's Notes
"Our Estate Chardonnay is the only white wine produced at Hirsch. With less than four acres of Chardonnay vines, production is highly limited. Vine age, dramatic soils, and our extreme maritime climate combine to create a wine of dazzling acidity, silky texture and pronounced minerality.
As with all our wines, our intention with the Chardonnay is to express the site, and winemaking is minimal. The grapes are direct pressed and transferred to oak barrels, 25-30% new, for fermentation and elevage. No yeast is added at any point. Primary and malolactic fermentations occur in barrel, and no lees stirring is employed.
In 1994 David Hirsch prepared 2.5 acres for planting on a rocky, 40% slope in Block 10. He was enamored with Barolo and intended to plant Nebbiolo. Burt Williams, who was buying our Pinot Noir grapes for his winery Williams Selyem, told David he was nuts and should plant Chardonnay instead. Thus the old Chardonnay vineyard was born. The cuttings came from Joe Rochioli; Williams Selyem made the wine from 1997 to 2000; Kistler took the fruit through 2005. In 2002 David planted an additional 1.4 acres of Chardonnay on a sandstone hill in Block 12, just over the hill from Block 10. Together these two tiny vineyards comprise our estate Chardonnay."
Varietal Composition: 100% Chardonnay
Appellation: Fort Ross-Seaview AVA, West Sonoma Coast
Farming Practices: Biodynamic
Aging: Fermented and aged in oak barrels, 25-30% new
Production: 920 cases
Winemaker: Jasmine Hirsch
93 Points - Vinous
"The 2023 Chardonnay Estate is laced with hints of tangerine oil, chamomile, citrus confit and white truffle. Like so many wines in this vintage, the Chardonnay is delicate and gracious. The 2023 is more understated than in some recent years, but it's classy and polished just the same." -AG, Jan/2025
