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SKU: 2034911
750ml
$34.98
Available: 24+
97 Points! Another fantastic partnership between winemaker and site, the 2023 Chardonnay Escolle Vineyard exudes the coolness of the place and year, tasting of wet stone and tense acidity. Barrel-fermented in puncheon just under a year, with another six months in stainless, it’s delightfully floral, structured, and graceful, ready to go another 10-12 years in bottle. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com
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The fourth-largest wine producer in the world, led by California. American fine wine is defined by ripe, expressive fruit and a spirit of innovation, with Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon among the most sought-after wines globally.
The world's most versatile white grape, producing everything from steely Chablis to rich, oaked whites. Its neutrality makes it a mirror of terroir and winemaking, and the foundation of white Burgundy and Champagne.
From our daily offers · October 10, 2026
Original offer text. Use today’s product price and availability above. Outdated or unverified offer prices are omitted. This article may feature other wines.
Santa Lucia Highlands · Single Vineyard
SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS · ESCOLLE VINEYARD
Serious Chardonnay From Serious Farming.
To Our Amazing Customers,
Ian Brand came to California with pretty much nothing. He ended up at some point working for Bonny Doon Vineyard ‘digging ditches’ as he says, which lead to other jobs at wineries such as Big Basin in Santa Cruz.
Wine got into his blood quickly. Self-taught, no real ‘wine school’ to be sure, Ian knew right away what his raison d’etre was going to be, sourcing great fruit from prized vineyards in his ‘zone’ and making very relatable terroir-driven wines from those sites.
Done, done and done.
His I. Brand & Family label is dedicated towards these specific sites, most of them only the geekiest of the geekiest (like us) would be familiar with.
Escolle Vineyard? If you’re a fan of California sparkling wine, you know this site in the Santa Lucia Highlands produces one of the best domestic bubblies on the market from the Caraccioli family. The site was planted in 2008 with multiple clones including Hyde, Clone 95 and Clone 17. The results were immediate and word got out. Now winemakers fight for whatever Chardonnay fruit the family does not use for its award-winning sparkling program.
The I. Brand & Family Chardonnay Escolle Vineyard 2023 was whole-cluster pressed, barrel fermented and given enough lees and oak to build texture without smothering the fruit. The notes here focus on orchard, citrus, coastal air, and a beguiling trim yet mouth filling texture. This is, as Ian says, “serious Chardonnay from serious farming, with no need to flex.”
Flex indeed. Like, a 97-point flex from JebDunnuck.com! Virginie Boone notes, “97 Points! Another fantastic partnership between winemaker and site, the 2023 Chardonnay Escolle Vineyard exudes the coolness of the place and year, tasting of wet stone and tense acidity. Barrel-fermented in puncheon just under a year, with another six months in stainless, it’s delightfully floral, structured, and graceful, ready to go another 10-12 years in bottle.”
TODAY'S OFFER
Escolle Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands 2023
THE REVIEW
97 Points | JebDunnuck.com (Virginie Boone)
“97 Points! Another fantastic partnership between winemaker and site, the 2023 Chardonnay Escolle Vineyard exudes the coolness of the place and year, tasting of wet stone and tense acidity. Barrel-fermented in puncheon just under a year, with another six months in stainless, it’s delightfully floral, structured, and graceful, ready to go another 10-12 years in bottle.”
