Emme Wines - 'Amando el Sol' - Colombard, Chardonnay - North Coast, CA - 2022

2022 70% Colombard / 30% Chardonnay ‘amando el sol’ Vineyard: **Ricetti (Colombard) and Bazzano (Chardonnay)AVA: *Redwood Valley, CA and Russian River Valley, CA *Farming: *Organic, Dry Farmed
*Harvest Date: *23 August 2022 (Chardonnay) and 7 October 2022 (Colombard) *Bottling Date: *23 March 2023
*Alc: *11%
*Cases: **170
Colombard from Ricetti Vineyard forms the base for the ‘amando el sol’. 2022 was a particularly late year for Mendocino – extreme heat in early September followed by rain and a prolonged cool period contributed to very slow ripening at Ricetti vineyard. Consequently, though the Colombard was picked in October, acid remained high and sugar remained low in the fruit, giving us a light, beautifully linear wine.
Once picked, the Colombard was pressed directly, settled overnight, then racked off gross lees into a stainless steel tank for primary fermentation. After primary finished, the wine was put down to neutral oak barriques and one small concrete egg to age for 6 months.
To add some creaminess and weight to the Colombard, Chardonnay from Bazzano vineyard was picked in late August. The Chardonnay was pressed directly, left to settle overnight, then racked off gross lees into a small concrete egg and two neutral oak barriques. After primary fermentation finished, the Chardonnay was racked out of concrete egg and consolidated in neutral barriques to age on lees for 7 months.
In late March, the Chardonnay and Colombard components were racked out of their barriques and blended just before bottling.
Indigenous yeast fermentation. SO2: 15 ppm at bottling. No other additions, unfined and unfiltered.
‘amando el sol’ means ‘loving the sun’, an ode to bright golden Colombard fruit that ripens happily in the California heat.

*Tasting Notes: *Racy, crisp, fresh lemon. Tastes like coastal sunshine.

My name is Rosalind, and I farm grapes organically and make wine without additives.
I work within a likeminded community of grape-growers and winemakers in Northern California. 2018 marked the first year I set out to create something of my own, albeit with the welcome support of the talented people who surround me.
Wine, at its core, is about community. Countless hands are involved in every glass you drink – the growers who planted cuttings three generations ago; the field workers who prune the vines in winter, tend them throughout the year and pick the grapes come autumn; the winemakers and interns who footstomp those grapes, forklift bins of fermenting fruit from tank to press, and fill barrels with wine to rest before bottling; and the distributors, restaurateurs, and sommeliers who help bring that bottle to you. An incredible amount of labor and love goes into filling a glass with wine, and I am constantly reminded of and grateful for the community who makes all of it possible. I could not do this alone, nor would I want to.
Similarly, at the end of the day, wine should be enjoyed with your own community of friends and family. I aim to make fresh, bright wines that taste good, encourage thoughtful discussion, and ultimately bring people together.