Ponzi Vineyards
Laurelwood Chardonnay 2021
Laurelwood District
Ponzi’s Laurelwood Chardonnay is crafted from fruit sourced from the family’s original 1970 plantings and other estate vineyards within the Laurelwood District AVA. Situated in Oregon’s Chehalem Mountains, the vineyard soils are characterized by the Laurelwood soil series—windblown loess atop ancient basalt bedrock. This unique soil composition imparts wines with great elegance, complexity, and abundant spice notes of white pepper, cardamom, and cola. Ponzi’s vineyards, sustainably farmed and LIVE Certified, highlight the region’s influence, where soil depth and elevation shape the wine’s character, from red fruit in younger vines to darker, richer flavors with age.
VINEYARD
The Laurelwood Chardonnay is a blend of Ponzi’s LIVE Certified Sustainable Avellana and Aurora Vineyards, along with the Paloma Vineyard, all on Laurelwood soil in the Laurelwood District AVA of the Chehalem Mountains.
WINEMAKING
The fruit was whole cluster pressed and the juice moved to French oak barrels (14% new) and fermented in barrel using native yeast. Malolactic fermentation was spontaneous and 100%. Lees were stirred once a week for 6 months and racked after 12 months to very neutral oak. After 20 months of total barrel aging, the wine was moved by compressed gas to tank for blending, then bottled by gravity.
VINTAGE
After the smoke filled 2020 vintage, and the “heat dome” events in the summer of 2021, the early rains in September refreshed the vines and the fruit started coming in mid-September perfectly clean, ripe, and full of flavor. Reminiscent of 2012, the nights were very cool creating wines with balanced acidity, big aromatics, and delicious full flavors. Yields were somewhat smaller than expected, but that adds to the intensity of color and structure of the wines.
TASTING NOTE
A complex nose of honeysuckle, mandarin, white peach, mango, lemongrass and ginger leads into a full palate, reminiscent of a light meringue and shortbread, all framed by a lively acidity and fresh finish.
FOOD PAIRING
Roasted halibut, lobster bisque, soft-ripened cheeses
Color
White
Blend %
100% Chardonnay
Appellation
Laurelwood District
Alcohol
13.1%
Suggested Retail Price
$37.99
Reviews
Decanter - June 1, 2024
James Suckling - March 18, 2023 "Showing bright Sicilian lemon, white grapefruit, matchstick, apricots and white tea aromas. Clean and deliciously creamy, with a medium to full body and focused finish."
Wine Spectator - March 4, 2024 "Rich yet steely, with handsome flavors of pear and apple that build structure and polish toward the spicy finish."
Wine Enthusiast - January 1, 2024 "Yellow apple slices, toasted filbert and dry, crunchy oak leaf aromas make for a fall-like nose. Flavors like white peach and lemon verbena glide along a creamy texture, joined by a trace of wet slate and soft acidity. Pair with Hugh Grant in 'Love Actually.'"
Reviews
Trade Materials
Other Wines by this Producer
Pinot Noir Reserve
Chehalem Mountains, Willamette Valley
Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve is the epitome of restrained power. It hails from estate grown fruit on Laurelwood soils in the Chehalem Mountains, including from some of Oregon’s oldest vines. This remarkably complex wine is handcrafted with tremendous attention to detail.
Tavola Pinot Noir
Willamette Valley, Oregon
Tavola is Ponzi's delicious early release Pinot Noir, a fruit-forward wine with soft tannins, made primarily from younger, lower elevations vines. Meant for early consumption, it is an unbeatable value for quality Pinot Noir.
Laurelwood Pinot Noir
Laurelwood District, Chehalem Mountains, Willamette Valley
Dick and Nancy Ponzi helped put Oregon on the map in the United States and the world, and the Ponzi family has worked continuously for over 50 years leading and innovating in the region and, in the case of Pinot Noir, across the country and indeed the world. Today winemaker Luisa Ponzi continues her work of the last 30 years with the family of Champagne Bollinger, which acquired Ponzi Vineyards in 2021. The estate’s drive to create distinctly pure Pinot Noir, in a distinctly Oregon manner, has never been stronger.
Pinot Gris
Willamette Valley
One of the original and most recognized Oregon and U.S. Pinot Gris producers, Ponzi was a major influence in establishing Pinot Gris as the first quality white grape variety in Oregon. Ponzi's Pinot Gris is an irresistably aromatic and expressive wine, and serves as a first encounter for many wine drinkers with Oregon wines and the Ponzi estate.
