Morgen Long - Marine - Chardonnay 2021
Price: $42.00
| Producer | Morgen Long |
| Country | U.S. |
| Region | Oregon |
| Subregion | Willamette Valley |
| Varietal | Chardonnay |
| Vintage | 2021 |
| Sku | 010137 |
| ABV | 13.05% |
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Seth Morgen Long is a young Oregon winemaker who focuses on site-driven Willamette Valley Chardonnay under his label, Morgen Long. Before starting Morgen Long in 2014, he worked with winemakers in the Willamette Valley, Central Otago, Santa Cruz Mountains, and Meursault. He is obsessive about Chardonnay and approaches winemaking with the view that thoughtful, ethical decisions in the vineyard and attention to details in the cellar allow for wine to be both delicious as well as authentic and transparent. Every effort is made to work with farmers who value ecology, sustainability and at best, live on and love the land they farm. Seth uses traditional production methods he learned from his years of traveling and working in different regions to craft Oregon Chardonnay that is as delicious upon release as it is age-worthy.
Morgen Long's Marine Chardonnay is a blend of grapes from three different, dry-farmed vineyards in the Willamette Valley: Loubejac Vineyard, AlexEli Vineyard and Yamhill Vineyard, all of which are on marine sediment soils. The grapes were fermented in a mix of stainless steel and oak barrels of varying size with ambient yeasts, followed by aging for 1 year in 15% new barrels, 40% neutral barrels and 45% stainless steel, then an additional winter resting in stainless steel. In the glass, the wine shows a brilliant light lemon color with a clear, water-white rim. The nose is complex and expressive with aromas of baked apples, ginger, white flowers, hazelnuts and a flinty, sea-shell minerality. All these flavors and more — Honeydew, guava, Meyer lemon — explode on the palate with a charge of super-fine acidity perfectly balanced by a round, softly-textured mouthfeel that dances along a mineral spine into a layered and refined finish. Lucid, beguiling and a supreme expression of the terroir of the Willamette Valley, make sure to drink between 50°-55° to fully appreciate the aromas, flavors and textures of this gorgeous Chardonnay.
