Lot Overview
- Region: Sonoma Coast — Freestone-Occidental (just outside Freestone, south-facing hillside)
- Vintage: 2023
- Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
- Elevation: 400–800 feet, Goldridge soils
- Oak Aging: ~50% new French oak, 15 months
- Alcohol: 13.2%
- pH: 3.20
- Cases Available: 175
- Cam Price: $12.50 ($149/case)
- Retail Estimate: $100+/bottle (planned inaugural price)
- Claude’s Source Guess: Ernest Vineyards — Freestone Ridge Vineyard (inaugural vintage)
- Wine Berserkers Guess: Platt Vineyard
- Drink Window: Late 2025–2034 (peak 2027–2032)
Cameron’s Release Notes
Lot 4 2023 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay comes to us from what many winemakers claim is the finest vineyard for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in California. Located just outside of Freestone on a south-facing hillside of Goldridge soils at 400–800 feet, this is truly one of California’s Grand Cru sites for Burgundian varietals. Similar to other Grand Cru sites like Ritchie Vineyard, vintners compete for the rights to purchase fruit from this vineyard with bottle prices ranging from $60 all the way up to $150.
But the vineyard was recently purchased and new ownership is taking all the fruit in-house. Turns out my winemaker is friendly with their winemaker and we got a phone call that ownership was trimming their sails on the inaugural bottling — would we like first crack at the excess gallonage? Hell, yeah. I paid twice the market rate to close, but their plan is to launch their brand well north of $100/bottle. Trust me on this one.
Tasting Notes
Pale yellow in the glass with an immediate bouquet of citrus/jasmine blossoms and orange marmalade mingling with toasted brioche and savory caramel notes. Beeswax, mint, lemon oil, and crushed rock complex the bouquet as it blooms in the glass. Linear on entry with fruit and acidity well balanced in a Burgundian framework of saline, orange marmalade, lemon drops and green apple notes riding a supple, crystalline beam of minerality into a long, mouthwatering, finesse-driven finish featuring beautifully integrated oak and classic elegance. Nervy, energetic and absolutely fantastic!
❌ Bottle Shock Status: Bottled May 28th — allow until approximately November 2025 before opening.
Claude’s Source Guess: Ernest Vineyards — Freestone Ridge Vineyard (inaugural 2023 vintage)
Ernest Vineyards, founded by Erin Brooks and Todd Gottula, farms over 34 acres of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir across multiple sites in the Freestone-Occidental sub-region of the West Sonoma Coast. In 2022 they purchased the Freestone Ridge Vineyard — a 22-acre south-facing hillside site rooted in Goldridge soils, developed with the explicit goal of crafting what the owners described as “the finest wine in the world.” The site description in real estate listings is nearly verbatim Cam’s release notes: south-facing slopes, Goldridge soils, Freestone area, planted to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Cam’s story — new ownership purchasing a legendary site, taking fruit in-house, making an inaugural vintage they scaled back, calling a winemaker friend with excess gallonage — matches perfectly with Ernest’s Freestone Ridge trajectory. The property appears to have subsequently been listed for sale, suggesting the owners reconsidered the project, which would explain the surplus availability. Ernest’s planned price “well north of $100” fits their ambition for this premium new site, well above their existing $30–55 range.
The WB community guesses of Peay, Littorai, or Ceritas are all viable alternative sources — those are established Freestone-area producers whose fruit does command $60–150/bottle. But the “recently purchased, new ownership, inaugural bottling” narrative doesn’t fit any of those established wineries. Ernest’s 2022 Freestone Ridge acquisition is the only recent vineyard purchase in this specific corridor that fits the timeline and story.
✅ Confidence: Medium-High — the geographic, geological, and narrative details align closely with Ernest Vineyards’ Freestone Ridge Vineyard acquisition. The “inaugural bottling” and “trimming sails” language suggests a new project that didn’t fully materialize, consistent with the vineyard subsequently appearing for sale.
Drink Window
❌ Do not open until late 2025 — Bottled May 28th, 2024. Needs 6+ months minimum.
Early: Late 2025 — as Cam noted on the bottle shock indicator.
Peak: 2027–2032. The 13.2% alcohol, 3.20 pH, and 50% new oak give this a Burgundian arc of 4–8 years from vintage.
Hold: 2034. West Sonoma Coast Chardonnay from great Goldridge sites ages beautifully for a decade-plus.
My Call: ⏳ Drink window: Late 2025–2034 (peak 2027–2032)