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The rolling hills and clay soils of the cool Carneros region provide excellent terroir for Chardonnay. The Sangiacomo family has been farming in the Carneros region for almost a century, and they have been selling grapes to the Saintsbury Winery for over 35 years. With the fruit from these meticulously farmed vineyards finding its way into much more expensive labels, this partnership helps make Saintsbury’s Sangiacomo Chardonnay both a great wine and a good value. The vineyards are planted to a variety of clones, such as Robert Young, Catarina, Old Wente, Dijon 95, 809, and 548. The wine is then made following Burgundian methods, including barrel fermentation, lees stirring (bâtonnage), and limited use of new oak. This is a zesty, energetic wine that pleases with fresh aromatics of lime and pineapple and flavors of tangy citrus and white peach.
Andre Tchelistcheff , the great Russian emigre winemaker/prophet, proclaimed that Carneros with its cool climate would one day produce Northern California’s best Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Though a few growers and sparkling wine producers in the 1970s heeded his call and began planting vineyards in the district, it took a few years for a winery to focus on making a true Carneros Chardonnay or Pinot Noir. One of the pioneers in this area was Saintsbury.
Founded in 1981 by Richard Ward and David Graves (who had met in an oenology class at UC Davis) Saintsbury has always aimed to produce distinctive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay exclusively from the cool and windy terroir of Carneros. Starting small, success came quickly, with the winery growing to 35,000 cases within 10 years. Over the years, Saintsbury has focused almost entirely on single vineyard and appellation-designated Pinot Noir and Chardonnay – though recently it has begun to make wine from vineyards in the Anderson Valley and to produce some Carneros Syrah as well. Saintsbury was an early adopter of using varietal clones to improve their wine by, for example, planting a particular vineyard site with the most appropriate clones or by using clonal diversity to achieve more complexity. A few years ago, Saintsbury sold off its Garnet line of high value wines in order to focus on appellation-designated or single vineyard wines. Frenchman Jerome Chery, the winemaker since 2004, is a specialist in these sorts of wines.
| Country | USA |
| Region | California |
| Appellation(s) | Los Carneros |
| Winery | Saintsbury |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Color | White |
| Varietal(s) | Chardonnay |
| Closure | Cork |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Bottle Size | 8.0 x 29.5 |
| Case Size | 35.5 x 27.0 x 30.5 |
| Alcohol | 13.5% |
| Product Code | SA20CCH |
| UPC | 732458950179 |
Orchard fruits, tropical notes, and flint open up to a crisp and zesty palate of lime, lemon curd, and floral notes. Finishes clean and slightly creamy.
After harvesting at night, the grape clusters are quickly sorted and gently pressed. The juice is fermented in French oak barrels (10% new) and aged for 8 months, with regular bâtonnage for additional complexity.