Antica Terra Aurata 2019
Antica Terra Aurata 2019 – alternate view 2
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Antica Terra Aurata 2019

Antica Terra
$280.00

Grape: Chardonnay
Vintage: 2019
Type: White

Produced from select chardonnay vineyards in the Eola-Amity Hills, this cuvée is blended to capture a warm, sun-kissed, and texturally rich profile. Winemaker Maggie Harrison monitors a native fermentation in a cold cellar, focusing on structural stability and natural acid retention without modern chemical adjustments. It ages for more than a year in a selection of French oak barriques to encourage a slow integration of fruit and oak. This manual process yields a bottle centered on mouthfeel and soil transparency.

It shows a medium straw color, releasing a perfumed nose of yellow flowers, tropical fruit, yellow apple, and light incense. The palate is full-bodied and ripe, yet it carries this weight effortlessly due to a sharp, driving line of natural acidity. Complex flavors of caramelized citrus, ripe nectarine, and almond coat the mouth in a silky, viscous texture. It finishes dry and persistent, leaving a lingering trail of crushed stone.

Maggie Harrison is a first-generation winemaker, having grown up in the Midwest. With an educational background in International Relations and Conflict Resolution, she fell in love with wine while working in restaurants and set out to follow that passion and create wine. She went on to land the position of assistant winemaker to Manfred Krankl at Sine Qua Non, where she remained for eight years. She is currently the co-owner and winemaker for Antica Terra, producing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay since 2005, and is also responsible for the Syrah at Lillian Winery in Santa Barbara. Initially, it had been her goal to only produce a singular wine, but during blind tastings for blending, she felt the various components would not necessarily complement one another and would overpower or detract from the other. Rather than force them to homogenize, each of the wines bottled today chases the individual and opposing personalities each possesses. Her wines are impeccably expressive and worth seeking out if you can get your hands on them.

I have always found with these wines that I am never compelled to overly coax the wine in tasting. They are distinctive, singular wines that, when given the time to allow the wine to come to you, make the transcendence to art.

- Audrey Frick (9/17/2023) © 2024 Jeb Dunnuck