25 May Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Seabold Cellars 2018 Chardonnay Olson Vineyard, Prunetucky Sands, Monterey

On the Thursday before Memorial Day in the United States, we celebrate International Chardonnay Day. This wonderfully neutral grape expresses where it comes from and the Seabold Cellars 2018 Chardonnay Olson Vineyard, Prunetucky Sands, Monterey is a prefect example of a wine that expresses place. That is why the Seabold Cellars 2018 Chardonnay Olson Vineyard, Prunetucky Sands, Monterey is the Please the Palate wine of the week.

Monterey, located less than 100 yards off the Monterey Bay shoreline, is 60 miles long and 2 miles deep. One of the world’s largest and deepest marine trenches, it is often called the Blue Grand Canyon. The cold waters of the Bay fuel the cold Salinas wind that funnels through the Gablian and Santa Lucia Ranges, creating a Thermal Rainbow, a large scale temperature gradation drawn through the length of the Salinas Valley.

It was the cool-climate of Monterey that drew Master Sommelier Christopher Miller to the region when he established his brand Seabold Cellars. With the belief that cool-climate vineyards produce balanced wines that showcase their origin more than their winemaking, Christopher takes a hands-off approach to his winemaking and lets the fruit speak for itself.

The Seabold Cellars Chardonnay is sourced from the Olson Vineyard in Pruneticky Sands, a small town officially called Prunedale. The Olson Vineyard has been owned by the Olsons since 1882. Sitting above Highway 101, it is only five unobstructed miles from the Monterey Bay and is one of the coldest vineyards in all of California. The Olson Vineyard has been farmed organically since its beginning.

The Chardonnay is hand-harvested at night. The grapes are hand-sorted and whole-cluster pressed very gently. The juice undergoes a native yeast fermentation in stainless steel and then the wine is aged in mostly neutral barrels. After 11 months, the wine is racked, blended, and bottled unfined and unfiltered.

This beautiful Chardonnay has elegant aromas of lemon curd, pear, and white peach. There is also a savory saline element to the wine. On the palate the wine has lovely acidity and a savory freshness that makes the mouth water.

The Seabold Cellars 2018 Chardonnay Olson Vineyard, Prunetucky Sands, Monterey retails for $40.