The Escultura Estate vineyard is located in the Casablanca Valley, just 20 km from the Pacific Ocean, where it benefits from a coastal influence that moderates temperatures throughout the year. Cool maritime breezes allow a gentle and prolonged ripening period that encourages grape aromas and flavours and ensures very good acidity levels. This condition makes the valley a privileged place for producing cool climate varietals such as Chardonnay. The vineyard was planted between 1992 and 1994 on granitic soils with low to medium vigour potential. The vines are vertically positioned, and the vineyard is drip irrigated. Casablanca’s 2006-2007 season was very good for varieties such as Chardonnay. The high and low temperatures between October and harvest resulted in a heat summation that was just 1% warmer than the previous season, which was in itself 4% cooler than the historic average. The early budbreak was not affected by spring frosts because the period from September through November was warmer than in a normal year, which is critical in the early-budding Chardonnay varietal. The initial warm period was followed by cooler periods of veraison and ripening (Dec-March), where the average high temperatures were lower than the historic averages. As a consequence, ripening advanced slowly with an excellent conservation of aromas and natural acidity. We harvested the grapes for our Chardonnay Estate from mid-March through early April. Upon arrival at the cellar, most of the grapes were whole cluster pressed, and the remainder were destemmed and gently crushed. Vinification took place with clean musts separated into different lots according to their specific characteristics. A third of the wine (32%) was fermented and aged in French oak barrels. The remaining 68% was fermented in stainless steel tanks and kept on its lees for 5 months to enrich the mouthfeel and add complexity. Greenish-yellow in colour, our 2007 Estate Chardonnay displays all of the intensity of the fruit obtained this year. Notes of pineapple, papaya, passion fruit, and quince predominate over a layer of citrus and lemon blooms, all wrapped in a layer of light toast that adds complexity. Bright acidity keeps it fresh, while a pleasingly creamy texture lingers on its elegant finish. Casablanca Valley La Escultura Estate 100% Chardonnay 13.5% by vol. 3.26 6.04 g/l (tartaric acid) 3.06 g/l