Description
POE, “Ferrington Vineyard” Chardonnay, Anderson Valley
Most people in the wine business remember a “eureka” moment that led them to pursue wine as a career. Samantha Sheehan was a tax accountant for corporate giant Deloitte & Touche who loved tasting wine in her (limited) downtime. Champagne was an early fascination, but she cites a 2002 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne, a Grand Cru white Burgundy, as the spark that really lit the flame. Her life path turned on a dime and a subsequent trip to Burgundy sealed her winemaking fate. Soon after, she found herself living in Napa with wine-soaked hands over her first barrel of Pinot Noir.
In 2009, Sam founded POE, her label inspired by her deep affection for Burgundy and Champagne. And although we’ve offered POE wines in the past, I don’t hesitate to call her “Ferrington Vineyard” Chardonnay an “epiphany wine”—especially for anyone who thinks California Chardonnay can’t have the energy, minerality, and nuance of white Burgundy. I may even have shouted “eureka!” during our tasting: This Chassagne-Montrachet döppleganger with a perfect touch of unmistakable California ripeness rocked the SommSelect tasting table. Delivering beautifully complex aromas, firm structure, and loads of wet-stone minerality, this wine establishes a new benchmark for refined quality. And value? Try to find a pedigreed, single-site Chardonnay from neighboring Sonoma County (let alone regional-level Burgundy) for $39! Given the breadth and scope of all her current projects, Samantha Sheehan has emerged as a winemaking tour-de-force. Get on board now while she’s still on the ascent!
Anderson Valley is home to some of the best cool-climate grape-growing in the state. Located just 10 miles from the Pacific Ocean, this narrow, low lying valley is perfectly positioned and shaped to funnel in ocean breezes and fog from the Pacific coast. Rain is also plentiful, making this a cool and moist viticultural area. The unique combination of geographical and climatic conditions found in the northwestern end of the valley has become the birthplace for some of the most elegant, nuanced Chardonnay and Pinot Noir being made in California. Structure derived from brisk acidity, not oak, and the impact from minerality, not over ripeness, are the key benefits for this region. Sparkling wines of exceptional quality are also made here, a fact that prompted the French Champagne house Louis Roederer to set up a local winery in the valley nearly four decades ago.
Not everyone who gets bitten by the winemaking bug after tasting their first bottle of life-altering Burgundy does it right. If that were the case, every Chardonnay you try would leave your head spinning. Samantha Sheehan is gifted. These days, POE is all about Sam’s single-site bottlings of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir sourced from the Anderson Valley and Manchester Ridge AVA’s. She also makes a full line of dazzling sparkling wines under this label. Today’s wine comes from the Ferrington Vineyard, which lies just west of the town of Boonville. Originally planted in the early 1970s, it was one of the first commercial vineyards in the region. The oceanic marine layer draws in at night, blanketing the vineyard with cool air until late the next morning. Ferrington sits on a gentle south-facing slope of sandy loam topsoil which runs a mere 3 feet deep before hitting a thin ripped clay layer sitting on top of Franciscan sandstone bedrock. Purchased from the original owner in 1996 on the notoriety of iconic Williams Selyem’s 1992 “Ferrington” Pinot Noir, the entire 72-acre vineyard was then replanted to high-grade Chardonnay and Pinot Noir material. Twenty-five years later, Williams Selyem remains a champion of Ferrington fruit as well as other heavy hitters like McPhail, Flowers, Copain, and Littorai.
For today’s 2018, Sam hand-harvested her pristinely grown, low-yielding grapes at low sugar levels to capture plenty of structural acidity. She believes that her Ferrington fruit delivers plenty of flavor at lower sugar levels, ultimately producing a much preferred wine of moderate alcohol. The grapes are pressed immediately after harvest, settled in tanks overnight, then naturally fermented in barrel. She does not stir the fine lees during the entire fermentation period, which generally runs for 18 months in neutral French oak. The wine was bottled without fining after a gentle filtration. Sam claims the 2018 was near perfect—an even-keeled growing season with no heat spikes, big flavors and gorgeous balance. We concur! The bouquet bursts out of the glass with sweeping notes of white flowers, crushed river rocks, stone fruits, lemon oil, warm honey and tart quince. A buffed, medium-bodied palate caresses pointed flavors of spiced pear, apricot skin, sea salt and orange zest. A core of mineral richness laced with an earthy soil note runs throughout the wine, finishing with focus and precision. This is the epitome of “hands off” winemaking resulting in a wine pulsating with tension and energy. A glorious effort to be enjoyed at 55 degrees in your Burgundy stems after a 30-minute “splash” decanting. Trust me, one taste of this stunner and your brain might think “Burgundy” but your soul will shout “California!”
