Eyrie’s Chardonnay story reinforces the visionary nature of its founder, David Lett. When planting Chardonnay back in 1964, he eschewed what he saw as unsuitable clones from UC Davis, choosing instead mass-selection cuttings from old vines (Draper clone, planted in the 1890s and 1930s) in California that he felt better suited to Oregon’s cooler climate. Unsurprisingly, his foresight has paid off, and Eyrie now boasts some of Oregon's oldest and most revered Chardonnay vine material. Since 2015, he has included a small portion of fruit from mass-selection vines (Wente clone and Sterling clone) planted in Sisters Vineyard in the foundational Eyrie Vineyard base.
The clonal breakdown for the 2021 Chardonnay is as follows: 61% Draper Selection from 57-year-old vines on the original Eyrie Vineyard; 26% Wente clone from eight-year-old vines in Sisters Vineyard; and 13% Sterling clone from eight-year-old vines in Sisters Vineyard. 2021 was another low-yielding season marked by warm, dry periods punctuated by short spells of rain. The summer was warm but brought into balance by a cool close to the season in September and October, while chilly nights preserved acid freshness across the board. Handpicked fruit was lightly pressed as whole bunches in a combination of antique basket press and Champagne cycle press. The juice was then gently run to primarily neutral French oak barrels (5% new) for natural fermentation. It underwent full malolactic conversion and matured for 11 months on lees with no stirring.