Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/869846
september 2017 / the tasting panel / 7 The winery has committed itself to seek out special, cool-climate vineyard sites throughout California that include its recently-purchased Hop Kiln Vineyard in the Russian River Valley, which grows acclaimed Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. A portion of that fruit off the historic Hop Kiln estate goes into its Overlook Chardonnay, including its counterpart, the Overlook Pinot Noir. Stach and his team blend fruit from several cool-climate sites, all of which are hand-picked. Each vineyard contributes to the synergy of the finished wine, but to say that Overlook is greater than the sum of its parts—46 to be exact—would be a serious injustice to the parts. The raw materials at his disposal come from a collection of vineyards revered for their production of consistently superior fruit vintage after vintage—and 2015 is no excep- tion. It's also the outcome of more than 40 years of longstanding relationships with their grower partners that Stach and his team have established. In 2015, the crop "was down more than usual, which means the wines are more concentrated," he notes. Concentration and intensity bode well for gratifying wines in their youth and for the potential to develop in the bottle. The 2015 Overlook shows a rich core of lemon, apricot and notes of hay, with the additional complexity of nutty, toasty notes from the barrel: an elegant, complex, ready-to-drink Chardonnay that may end up much like the 2005 Overlook, a library wine pulled from the cellar in honor of the wine's quarter-cen- tury mark. "It's a discussion in a bottle," says Stach of the fully-developed beauty. The 2005 Overlook displays a deep gold robe with pronounced aromas of caramelized golden apple, baked pear, vanilla custard and a bright thread of acidity that carried well through the finish. By demonstrating longevity and synergy, this Overlook Chardonnay is indeed, as Aristotle famously stated, greater than the sum of its parts. Tasting the single-vineyard 2015 Sangiacomo Chardonnay, which played a significant role in the Overlook blend, reveals a blast of pear, citrus and chalky minerality that points to vineyard provenance, while the 2015 Lorenzo Chardonnay, another key player, is long and toasty, with menthol and saline to its credit. Once again, the beauty and completeness of the wines that com- pose the blend is undeniable. Landmark begins to craft the Overlook each year with the production of complete, standalone wines. On my last visit, as Stach opened the doors to the barrel room to taste the compo- nents he'll be using for the next vintage, it was a reminder of how the past Overlook vintages have been assembled and an indulgent, voyeuristic look at what lies ahead for this celebrated wine. "We're seeing happy levels of acidity in 2016," Stach observes as we enter the barrel room to taste other key compo- nents of the Overlook Chardonnay. First up, Rodgers Creek Vineyard. Planted in 2004, the vineyard sits at 300 feet above sea level just east of Petaluma, where it experiences the full brunt of wind and fog from the Pacific Ocean. Both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are planted here to light, chalky volcanic ash soils. "This vineyard is maturing and showing us the full potential of the site," says Stach as he draws samples of his 2016 C Clone wine. With abundant aromas of jasmine and green tea, it shows a characteristic nutmeg marker and honeyed, focused, mineral expres- sion. The Rodgers Creek Wente Clone shows pristine, focused tropical and stone fruits, pineapple being a Wente marker, with a finish reminiscent of white peaches and chervil. According to Stach, Rodgers Creek is a leading wine in the 2015 Overlook and will be dominant in the next vintage. A 2016 Sangiacomo sample drawn from a new barrel—one that was steambent for a luxuriously light, even toast—dem- onstrates the backbone of the blend, with notes of graphite and some wood tannins on the finish. The same wine aged in a single-use barrel has been transformed. The oak has integrated, forming an even flavor profile of golden apple and ripe Meyer lemon with singing acidity—clearly a wine exuding energy. Landmark sources some of the oldest plantings of Old Wente Clone Chardonnay on AxR1 rootstock in California from the Lorenzo Vineyard, which sits squarely in the middle of Russian River Valley. The clay content of the soils here results in a notable mineral expression in the wine, which expresses fragrant orange blossom, ripe white peach and mandarin. Tasting Overlook in progress wouldn't be complete without Flocchini, a vine- yard similar in age to Rodgers Creek that lies southwest of the Sangiacomo vineyard in Sonoma. Composed of the Haire soil series, Flocchini has few limiting factors and significant amounts of clay that allow for the higher vigor considered ideal for Chardonnay. It's no secret that Landmark's intimate knowledge of each vineyard allows for a stellar final product. With the 2015 now complete and the 2016 showing such promise, it looks like the Overlook Chardonnay may last a quarter century more. A 25-year gold medallion commemo- rates the quarter-century milestone for Landmark's signature Overlook Chardonnay. "It's a discussion in a bottle."