Left Coast Cellars Truffle Hill Chardonnay, Willamette Valley Estate, Oregon 2014
$24.99 at Crush Wine & Spirits in Bryant, Arkansas (AR)
90 points – Wine Spectator
100% Chardonnay. Fermentation: 66% oak barrels, 33% stainless steel. Aging: 25% new French oak, 75% neutral oak.
Creamy mouthfeel with crisp golden apple, pear, and fig flavors.
Left Coast Cellars was founded in 2003 by Suzanne Larson who is now the Brand Ambassador for the winery. Her agricultural background while growing up with a Scandinavian heritage along with extended stays in Italy and France were main influences on her to start her own winery in Willamette Valley. Her time spent in Burgundy, France influenced her love for cool-climate grapes. The estate has 500 acres with 142 acres under vines. The winery is now run by her son, Taylor Pfaff, who became CEO in 2016. He started working on the wineries harvests since 2010 and earned an MBA in Wine and Spirits from Kedge Business School of the University of Bordeaux. He is works with the help of winemaker, Joe Wright, who had several years of winemaking experience in Willamette Valley before joined Left Coast in 2011.
Their wine labels bear the Lewis and Clark map of the area. The winery uses sustainable farming practices and a vast majority of the estate’s electrical needs is solar powered.
