Marine Layer 'Aries' Chardonnay Sonoma Coast 2021

Marine Layer is the collaborative venture of Baron Ziegler and winemaker Rob Fischer (of Banshee Wines), designed to highlight the singular terroir of the Sonoma Coast. As the name indicates, the thick marine fog that blankets the area creates extreme yet rewarding conditions for winegrowing, with delicious results! Their ‘Aries’ draws from three different vineyards: the Charles Heintz Vineyard and Bohemian Vineyard in the Green Valley sub-AVA, as well as Marine Layer’s home vineyard in Sebastopol Hills. The wine’s namesake constellation appears in the sky just as the vines come back to life in the spring. Hand-picked at night, the grape clusters are pressed and then ferment in oak puncheons (25% new) with indigenous yeasts. After complete malolactic fermentation, the wine ages for 11 months. The single-vineyard barrels are blended and then bottled without fining and with only light filtration. Richly textured yet cut with sea-fog minerality and structuring acidity, this complex California chardonnay unfolds with lemon curd and almond oil on the palate, followed by a finish of preserved lemon and citrus peel. Organically grown, low-intervention/natural wine, vegan.