By committing to pursuing high quality California Pinot Noir back in the late 1970’s, Saintsbury founders Dick Ward and David Graves put themselves in the forefront of a movement that would eventually catapult California wines, Carneros Pinot Noir and Saintsbury onto the world wine stage. According to the Wine Spectator’s Matt Kramer, Saintsbury not only “single-handedly demolished the old assertion that California cannot create Pinot Noirs of a Burgundian standard of delicacy and finesse,” but also “no winery has been more methodical in its investigation and pursuit of newly available Pinot Noir clones than Saintsbury.” The stellar range of Saintsbury Pinot Noirs and unfiltered Chardonnays has never performed better than today. Hats off to Dick and Dave who continue to lead the way with innovation and inspiration.

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At Saintsbury, the Chardonnay is fermented in French oak barrels and aged sur lie for about eight months. Thirty percent of these barrels are new; the balance has been used once and twice before. During the aging process, the barrels are stirred (batonnage) to increase yeast contact for added richness. The wine also completes malolactic fermentation in the barrel, which can add roundness to the mouthfeel and complexity to the aroma. Saintsbury has asked the question "to filter or not to filter” Chardonnay since the 1992 vintage. Following the success of a small "unfiltered” bottling of the 1993 vintage, we have chosen to bottle each subsequent vintage without filtration. The wines show much more vibrant fruit character and rich mouthfeel, particularly in the first year of release, than their filtered predecessors.