2019 Buena Tierra Vineyards Chardonnay 750ml

With an Old Wente selection, roughly 50-year-old vines, François Frères and Taransaud oak and Thomas Rivers Brown as winemaker, is it any wonder that Shibumi Knoll’s 2019 Chardonnay Buena Tierra Vineyard is a huge success? Pineapple and pear fruit is joined by hints of butter and toasty oak in this nicely balanced, poised effort. Medium to full-bodied, with a seductively silky texture, this is a lovely, easy-drinking Chardonnay to enjoy over the next several years. - Wine Spectator, 95pts

We discovered the Buena Tierra vineyard in the Russian River Valley, by meet­ing a vintner, Eugena Keegan, who bought chardonnay grapes from the Sonoma coast. She asked if we'd like to barrel taste the wine. The wine was stunning. She was moving to Oregon, so we approached the owner of Buena Tierra Vine­yards on the Russian River in Sonoma County about buying the grapes. The owners were reluctant because the vines were at the time 35 years old and pro­duction was down. We offered to pay full production price for whatever grapes were harvested, an agreement that continues to this day.