Newton, Napa Valley (California) Chardonnay 2018

 An exciting and complex wine with enticing aromas of Granny Smith apple, grapefruit, vanilla and faint floral notes.  It displays fresh, crisp green apple and Meyer lemon fruit that is complemented with a creamy texture in the mouth.  It is at the same time rich and creamy, structured and crisp.  The grapes were  grown mainly in the cool Carneros region and were harvested at night to take advantage of cool temperatures.  They were fermented by indigenous yeasts and aged on lees for 12 months in French oak barrels, less than a quarter of which were new.  As stated on the label, it was not filtered before bottling.  Newton’s first unfiltered Chardonnay was released in 1990.  It was the first Napa Valley wine to display this method on a wine’s label.