Lady of the Sunshine, Chardonnay Chêne Vineyard 2021

100% Chardonnay

San Luis Obispo, California, United States 

Biodynamic. Located on the south west side of the Edna Valley AVA, 4 miles from the ocean, Chene is a 6.5 acre vineyard that is densely planted with 12,000 vines, making up 5.5 acres of Pinot Noir and 1 acre of Chardonnay. The Chardonnay vines were planted in 2011 and the soil composition is a mix of sandy and volcanic rock. The grapes were harvested on September 6th and were foot tread and soaked on skins for 24 hours before being whole bunch pressed. The juice was barreled down to neutral French oak barrels and fermented with native yeasts. Battonage and aged sur lie for 10 months in the same barrels they fermented in. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. VEGAN 120 cases made.

Gina Hildebrand grew up on her family’s eighty-six acre Biodynamic certified farm, Narrow Gate Vineyards, in the Sierra Foothills of Northern California. After obtaining her degree in Wine and Viticulture, she spent several years working with different winemakers who focused on responsible farming in France, New Zealand, Oregon, and the Napa Valley. Gina returned to her home state of California, and established Lady of the Sunshine in 2017. Her wines are a playful expression on California sites that are serious about farming, and are made with wild yeast, neutral oak, and are not fined or filtered. Gina and her husband, Mikey, run Scar of the Sea and Lady of the Sunshine together out of their winery in San Luis Obispo, CA.