Technical Specs for:

2019 Steel Magnolia Chardonnay


Varietal(s):
100% Chardonnay

AVA:
Middleburg Virginia AVA

Vineyard:
Devil’s Bliss

Harvest Date:
September 5, 2019

Fermentation and Aging:
Steel Fermented
For 5 Months

More Technical Stuff:

Alcohol 12.8%
pH 3.55
Brix 24.0
Residual sugar 0.0
Cases Produced 125

Label:
Front and Back Label

Background on the Wine:
We first made this wine in 2017 but produced just under 70 cases. It was a great hit in the tasting room but never stuck around long enough to enter it any competitions – not that we had enough anyway. The redux of the wine in 2019 nearly doubled production after the wine was awarded Best Chardonnay in Loudoun County at the Loudoun Wine Awards we sent it off to the 2022 Virginia Governor’s Cup where it fetched a gold medal, one of only two unoaked Chards to pull off the feat.

More details on the process:
We cycle our Chardonnay releases from light oak to stainless each season. Aged in stainless for a crisp finish, we feel we have been rewarded in more ways than one. The aromatics are bright, the tasting notes pull you away from the traditional Chardonnay fingerprint, and the expressions of Virginia shine bright, bursting with flavor.

Background on the name:
Previously our light oaked Chardonnay releases (“Chapter 1: The Start of Something Beautiful”, “Birthday Suit”, and “Levity”) felt like different interpretations of the vineyard. The steel aged releases seemed more focused and honed in, thus the name stayed the same on both releases of “Steel Magnolia”. We believe its going to stick – and why not? People love it and the name removes the need to ask ‘is this aged in oak or steel?’