Zepaltas Wines

This is the 3rd vintage of our top barrel selection Chardonnay blend. 2009 was a no brainer year in the Russian River Valley. It was easy to decide when to pick the fruit no matter what style a winemaker was going for. We had really dense flavors early on in the vineyards on Chardonnays as the fruits started to ripen.
Now that we are working with more Chardonnay vineyards, we are able to have more options (and some fun) at the blending sessions. We based the blend off of barrels from the famed Keefer Ranch Vineyard near Graton and then tasted the wines with some other barrels blended in. In the end, we found that a touch of Chardonnay from the Sapphire Hill Vineyard added an exotic touch to the blend.
The 2009 Babushka is clean, crisp but with a rich mouthfeel. On the nose there are hints of pear, honey fig and wet stones and it is all held together by the crisp acidity and slightly chalky mouthfeel. If you were a fan of the
previous vintages of this bottling, you will not be disappointed. The staple meal in the Zepaltas household with a chardonnay like this is a simple roasted chicken with side of roasted root vegetables. Enjoy now or let this wine age for a couple years to add some extra layers of flavor.