Antica Terra Aequorin 2016
Antica Terra Aequorin 2016
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Antica Terra Aequorin 2016

Antica Terra
$340.00

Grape: Chardonnay
Vintage: 2016
Type: White

This limited Chardonnay bottling is crafted by winemaker Maggie Harrison at the Antica Terra estate in the Eola-Amity Hills. The fruit is selected through an intense barrel-by-barrel tasting process where conventional vineyard designations are set aside in favor of sheer structural harmony. The winemaking utilizes low-intervention practices, allowing the native ferments to unfold in a cold cellar environment. Aging occurs in a tailored selection of French oak barrels, focusing on structural integration and texture over obvious varietal sweetness.

It pours a pale straw color with silver highlights, opening with nuanced aromas of green apple, lemon confit, hazelnut, and cold matchstick reduction. The palate is medium-bodied and tightly wound, balancing a creamy mouthfeel with a sharp, driving line of volcanic acidity. Flavors of fresh pear and orange blossom interweave with a vein of mineral salinity. The wood influence is integrated, providing a frame that guides the fluid texture.

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