SHOP / 2024 Red Willow Chardonnay
Varietal
100% Chardonnay
Appellation
Yakima Valley AVA
Aging
Drink now or age for 10+ years
Vineyard
Red Willow
2024 Red Willow Chardonnay
Yakima Valley AVA
The 2024 Red Willow Chardonnay has a delightful combination of lush stone fruits, racy acid and minerality. The swirling bouquet is highlighted with Bosc pear, nectarine, lilac and a touch of petrichor. The mouth-feel dance begins soft and round, then leads to a more angular and zesty finish. Flavors of Granny Smith apple, preserved lemon, peach and vanilla bean are framed by a pithy edge of fine structure. This Chardonnay has tons of personality now to discover but will surely evolve immensely over the next 10+ years if you can wait.
93 Points - Previous Vintage
— Vinous
93 Points - Previous Vintage
The 2023 Chardonnay Red Willow is remarkably pretty, mixing white flowers with a whiff of confectionery spice, stone dust and fermented ginger. It's deeply textural and silken, with admirable weight, all supported by fresh acidity as decadent ripe pit fruits swirl accross the palate. This cleans up beautifully, crisp and gently structured with a floral resonance that lingers.
October 2025
Additional Scores:
92 Points
Jeb Dunnuck
previous vintage
91 Points
Wine Enthusiast
previous vintage
91 Points
Wine Spectator
previous vintage
Behind the Wine
2024 Red Willow Chardonnay
Red Willow is the result of four generations of farming dating back to the 1920s growing potatoes alfalfa and hay. In 1971, Mike Sauer enlisted renowned WSU viticulturist Dr. Walter Clore to start planting wine grapes on the slopes where his other crops wouldn’t grow. Red Willow vineyard is at an elevation of 1,300 feet, which places it above the Missoula Floods and escapes the deep soils that it created. Here the soils are poorer ancient soils which as Mike discovered, is perfect for wine grapes.
Vineyards
Red Willow Vineyard is the furthest western vineyard within the Yakima Valley AVA.
Winemaking
10% new barrel, 10% 2nd fill, 41% neutral barrel, 39% stainless steel fermented. Partial Malolactic Fermentation. Barrels racked into concrete for over-vintaging.