Vintage Update October 2006

Vineyard Report
October 24, 2006
Eric Miller, Winemaker

The end has come, and I'm still thinking: This is a winemaker's vintage. Mother Nature did not just hand it over as she has been known to do in other years. In those years anybody can make wine. But in this kind of vintage, the kind that happens several times in any given decade, we have to work very hard to pull it off. What that means is extreme cooperation between the vineyards and our cellar, and supreme confidence to do what has to be done, whatever the price.

And pay we did. One of the best examples of the 2006 vintage might be the saga of Sangiovese, the heart-break grape of Tuscany, an on-going challenge to California, and a newcomer on the east coast wine scene. After thinning the crop once I could tell it was simply asking too much for those massive juicy Sangiovese clusters to ripen. So, a month before harvest I renegotiated payment per acre rather than price per ton, and we dropped more precious grapes on the ground. The resulting wine is still in fermentors, but the flavors are probably the best we have worked with in the past four years and I think we have crossed a new threshold of potential.

In other cases this vintage, the question was not "how much?" but "how long?" With this year's on-again, off-again rain, it has been logical to let the fruit hang out there until we got max flavor and seed ripeness. As a result, we now have some small lots of exceptional wines. But the price for this has been declassification of a prized Barbera vineyard, loss of half of the Miller Estate Chambourcin to predators, declassification of the Miller Estate Pinot Noir to a "Barrel-Select" lot, and a nagging question in the cellar: "Is it worth doing all this work for so little wine?"

Have I said this before? 2006 is a winemaker's vintage. It's in, and I'm beginning to come to terms with this year's work. I can now give you my first early projection of what we have in the cellar, on a simple ten point scale:

• Syrah: 8/10
• Barbera/Sangiovese: 8/10 (but the count is still out)
• Chambourcin, Seven Valleys Vineyard: 9/10
• Chardonnay: 8/10
• Pinot Noir: 7/10
• Pinot Grigio: 9/10
• Merlot: 9/10
• Cab Sauv: 8/10

Overall, my expectations of the character of this vintage are bright fruity whites with clean acidity and the minerality typical of the Atlantic Uplands. Reds with ripe fruit, lean fine tannins, and moderate aging potential. Comparable to '99 and exceeding '03 and '04. And I'll tell you a lot more later this winter after things are settled and we have done our first tasting/decision making.

Cellar Report: The 2005 Vintage

Sometime during December 2005 I retracted my statement that the '01 and '02 vintages might have been rated 10 out of 10. Considering what happened in 2005 I down-graded those previous vintages to 9 and gave '05 a 10. I'm allowed to do that! Now, as I taste the brilliant '05 wines I believe that indeed we had near-perfect conditions....but am reminded that near perfect is only as good as the final work we do in the cellar.

After about 5 years of experimentation (with techniques like cold soaking, a la the brilliant Ken Wright), Cellarmaster Jim Osborn and I have agreed that extended skin/seed contact produces greater mouth-feel and potential extended aging. Thus, Chaddsford's 2005 reds -- Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Merican -- are packed with rich deep color, sweet extracts and mouth-filling tannins. Yes, we have gone all the way in allowing them, even blending elements like Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petite Verdot, to ferment and mascerate well-past 0° brix. Completely dry with maximum tannin uptake. This in a super-ripe year when grapes achieved full potential. What else can I say?

We are now buying in an incredible amount of new barrels for extended aging before bottling. Further, we are using a high percentage of heavy toasted oak. So hang onto your seat belts ladies and gentlemen, this is a RED YEAR at Chaddsford Winery...particularly if you're a Chambourcin lover. This year we will be offering three vineyard designated lots: the big Seven Valleys Chambourcin, the delicate Miller Estate Chambourcin, and a new first-time vineyard bottling (filled with dark fruit and spice) from the Jansen Estate. You have tasted Jansen in our best years' Proprietors Reserve Red, but I will never blend it off in a good year again.

As for whites, don't let go. After several years of yeast trials we have heavily invested in some new designer strains that have brought out maximum fruit in Spring Wine, Pinot Grigio and both the Miller Estate and Roth Chardonnays. Yes, Roth Chardonnay! In this, our first Roth since 2001, we have embarked on a partial malo-lactic fermentation, retained a natural acidity, brilliant fruit and creamy apple-pie flavor swollen into sweet vanilla. I am so excited.

2004s Available Now

While we're waiting for the '05s, I offer you the delayed, barrel-ripened and vineyard designated reds from '04. Keep your tongue out for the Merlot. We seem to have lost some color but the jammy fruit and intensity just goes on. After a long period of excessive mint and dill both the Miller Estate and Seven Valleys Chambourcin have opened up to deep ripe dark fruit. And, down the road, you will find a Meritage worth waiting for. Yes, I am happy to say that, looking ahead to both the '04s and '05s, I have some kick-ass wines you are going to love.

Eric Miller, Winemaker