Sandler Wine Co. Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay 2021

Viticulture

This 2021 is Sandler's second release from the R Bar R Ranch in the Santa Cruz Mountains, with the first being the 2019.  The vineyard is at the southern end of the appellation, and sits at 1,200 feet, above the fog most days.  2021 was the first "normal" growing season we've had in years, with the exception that it was in the middle of a three year drought.  In spite of the lower rainfall over the previous winter, the cool growing season allowed the Chardonnay to ripen slowly until October 20.

Vinification

Harvest date:  10-20-21
Fermentation:  Barrel-fermented, full malolactic
Aging:  13 months in 100% neutral French oak
Bottling date:  11-18-22
113 cases produced

Tasting notes

The texture is very rich for a wine that saw no new oak at all, but it spent 13 months in barrel on its lees.  The long finish shows bright, refreshing acidity, so enjoy this with a variety of foods, or try it on its own.

Winery Description

Sandler wines are produced in San Francisco by owner and winemaker, Ed Kurtzman.  Ed's journey into winemaking began quite by accident when he took a job at a wine shop during his undergraduate studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.  It wasn't long before Ed realized that wine was more than a passing fancy.  He jettisoned his original career plans, moved to California to sell wine, and soon enrolled in the enology program at Fresno State.  After graduating, Ed embarked on an early career that included stints at a who's who of Central Coast wineries.  He started out in the cellar at Bernardus, under the tutelage of Don Blackburn and Kirby Anderson.  Next, he spent three harvests as assistant winemaker to Michael Michaud at Chalone before taking the reins as head winemaker for Rob and Diana Jensen's Testarossa Winery in Los Gatos.  It was at Testarossa that Ed's deft touch with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay started to gain widespread attention.  Before long, he found himself in demand as a consulting winemaker, taking on clients including Fort Ross, Freeman, Roar and Mansfield-Dunne while becoming a partner in August West.

In 2003, Ed launched his own label, the Sandler Wine Company, devoted to small bottlings of Pinot Noir, Syrah, Zinfandel and Grenache, from his favorite vineyard and grower sources.

Sandler Winemaking

Drawing on his long-standing relationships with top vineyards throughout California's top appellations, Ed has crafted a portfolio of limited production, single vineyard offerings including Pinot Noir from the Bien Nacido Vineyard (Santa Maria Valley), Peterson Vineyard (Santa Lucia Highlands) and Keefer Ranch (Russian River Valley); Syrah from the Connell Vineyard (Bennett Valley); Zinfandel from the Buck Hill Vineyard (Sonoma County); and Grenache as well as Pinot Noir from the Boer Vineyard (Chalone).  Ed vinifies each lot separately, employing low-input winemaking and minimal handling to promote authentic vineyard and vintage flavors in the final wine.  The Sandler Wine Company line-up changes slightly from year to year based upon vintage variables and the addition of new vineyards.

"There are a number of winemakers in California that have a hand in more than one label, but no Pinot Noir vintner that I know of can match the resume of winemaker Ed Kurtzman" - Rusty Gaffney, PinotFile