2021 T. Berkley Wines "Norgard Vineyard" Chenin Blanc, Mendocino County, California, USA

ABOUT THIS WINE

These vines, planted in 1980, are a throwback to a more rustic time in California grape growing. Quadrilaterally trained and utilizing the “California sprawl” trellis, these old vines still thrive in the silty Mendocino County soils outside Ukiah. Minimally intervened with and farmed organically, the vines year in and year out produce some of the most outstanding Chenin Blanc in the state.

The grapes for this wine were hand-picked intentionally at lower brix, foot-tread, and left on skins for up to a day before being pressed and settled overnight. Fermentation took place in a mix of neutral French Oak barrels, stainless-steel barrels, and a concrete egg, and the wine was then aged on lees 12 months, and in tank (off lees) for 3 more. The resultant wine has beautiful, vibrant acidity, and excellent phenolic structure with notes of honeycomb, lemon curd, and lanolin. 210 Cases Produced.

ALC 13.5%

pH 3.30

TA 5.2 g/L

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

From T. Berkley:

"Since I began my career in wine in 2010, I have sought to work with top producers around the world from whom I could learn about wines that fit my ethos: managing viticulture in a sustainable way, crafting wine with minimal intervention, and showcasing a unique sense of place in every bottling.

That journey has taken me all over the world. To Central Otago’s Felton Road to learn about their biodynamic farming practices and Carrick Winery to create a different expression of premium Pinot Noir from a similar terroir in the southern hemisphere; to Australia’s Brokenwood to gain access to its long history of wine appreciation and winemaking education; to northern California to study with the likes of Kosta Browne and Littorai, absorbing lessons on the production of ultra-premium wines and expanding my knowledge of and interest in organic and biodynamic farming; and to the Wachau in Austria, where I deepened my appreciation for fine, age-worthy white wines at Weingut Knoll.

I launched T. Berkley Wines in 2016 with the longer vision of a treatise in Cabernet Franc, a grape that both inspired my winemaking journey and that I feel does not receive the attention that it deserves for all of its undeniable potential. I’ve spent years visiting the Loire Valley and tasting the spectrum of wines made there, and access to a selection of terroir-driven grapes has been integral to my process.

As the concept concretized, I was offered the opportunity to purchase old vine Chenin Blanc, and my focus was further honed – wines inspired by the best of the Loire, made under the California sunshine. Each vintage, I produce a handful of core wines applying my philosophy of minimal intervention, letting the sites and the varietal characteristics speak for themselves. The project is named in honor of my maternal grandfather Jack Berkley, for whom I am named and at whose side I spent so many of the formative years of my life.

For me, the question of how the grapes are grown is fundamental. I got my start in the vineyard at Felton Road in New Zealand, attracted by biodynamic farming practices that reverberated in their final wines, and I have since understood that the role of the winemaker that of shepherd – guiding, correcting, and shaping their raw material. In California in particular, too often grape-growing is separated from the wine-making, but the best wines the world over are dependent on cohesion between these two essential halves. Working with small, independent grape growers who implement sustainable and organic practices in the vineyard is fundamental to my winemaking philosophy, and I’m honored to work with a variety of old vine, sustainable sources from Mendocino, Sonoma, and Napa.

In 2018, I was approached to take over management of the Teachworth Napa Valley estate in the Diamond Mountain District, where I can apply my viticultural philosophies – organic with biodynamic influences – to their mountainous estate vineyard situated between 700-1,000 feet and craft a Napa Valley Estate Cabernet Sauvignon each year. It is now also home to T. Berkley Wines, having moved my production there since the harvest of 2018, and I invite you to come and visit me here!"