01 Sep Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Pfendler Vineyards 2019 Chardonnay, Petaluma Gap, Sonoma County

A beautifully vibrant and expressive Chardonnay always puts a smile on my face. And I have been smiling all week after enjoying the Pfendler Vineyards 2019 Chardonnay, Petaluma Gap, Sonoma County, the Please The Palate wine of the week.

Pfendler Vineyards was founded in 2008 by Kimberly Pfendler who wanted to honor the legacy of her late husband Peter Pfendler. Peter first came to the region and planted vines in 1992. Today Pfendler Vineyards is a leading producer in the Petaluma Gap and at the helm is winemaker Erica Stancliff.

Erica Stancliff is deeply rooted in the Petaluma Gap. She has served as President of the Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance since 2019, and makes Petaluma Gap wines for her family winery, Trombetta Family Wines. In addition to the other wineries that Erica is the winemaker, she joined Pfendler Vineyards in 2019 where she makes wines that express the vineyard sites.

I love the neutrality of the Chardonnay grape which really reflects where is it grown. The 2019 Pfendler Vineyards Chardonnay ($45), Erica’s first vintage with Pfendler Vineyards, is a pure expression of the Pfendler’s estate vineyards, located on the west side of Sonoma Mountain.

The 2019 Chardonnay is a blend of fruit from Pfendler’s lower elevation estate sites: the cool and foggy Pullis Vineyard, which sits at 1,000 feet elevation, and the original Pfendler Vineyard which sits at 1,800 feet elevation. The unique wind and fog conditions of the Petaluma Gap result in a wine that is elegant, fresh, and vibrant with aromas of lemon curd, citrus, green apple, and honeysuckle, linear acidity, and a beautiful texture on the palate. The Pfendler Vineyards 2019 Chardonnay, Petaluma Gap retails for $45 and will definitely please the palate.