2013 Joseph Phelps Chardonnay Freestone Vineyards Sonoma Coast is sold out.

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2013 Joseph Phelps Chardonnay Freestone Vineyards Sonoma Coast 750 ml

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  • Get credited back if a wine fails to impress

95pt Freestone Chardonnay — Shot Berries on Sonoma Coast

There are few places on Sonoma’s fog-laden coastline capable of challenging the best of Burgundy on the short list of the world’s greatest Chardonnays. Almost all feature Goldridge soils, an ancient seabed of sandy loam that offers ample drainage, allowing roots to spider deep into the substrata. Each spot is cold and edgy, rarely topping 90 degrees on the hottest of summer days, before plummeting into the 50s overnight. The berry size is small. Wente clone clusters are strewn with seedless berries — what the Burgundians call millerandage — filling the sturdy shoulders of these cool-climate Chardonnays with a juicy core of lemon-honey opulence.

In 1999, Napa Valley icon Joseph Phelps pulled the trigger on a 100-acre dairy farm on the foggy hillsides above Freestone. The Pinot Noir market was piping hot, fueled by the movie “Sideways.” After evaluating each block on the property for soil composition and exposure, Phelps determined that both world-class Pinot Noir AND Chardonnay could be grown on his new property. Still, Joe played it safe and planted the vast majority of Pastorale Vineyard to Pinot Noir, setting aside just 20 acres for Chardonnay.

Rugged soils and the chilly microclimate make for tiny yields, typically just 2.5 tons per acre. In 2013, a sensational Chardonnay vintage at Freestone for both quality and quantity, yields were barely 3 tons/acre. Sugars came in at 23.5 Brix. Acids were crisp and vibrant.

In a blind tasting, the 2013 Joseph Phelps Chardonnay Freestone Vineyards Sonoma Coast is a drop-dead knockoff of a village Puligny-Montrachet. Pale gold-green. Piercing, tightly wound, mineral aromas of ripe apple, beeswax, and citronelle. Rich, sturdy, and finely delineated, slowly peeling off fine layers of apple/pear/quince and oyster shell complexity, braced with new-wood cedar, finishing with great penetration and persistence.

95 points from Wine Enthusiast. Our last 20 cases are up for grabs on this quick afternoon missive sent ONLY to loyalists. $38/bottle. Shipping included on 6.