Heaps Good Chardonnay/Sivi
Winery: Heaps Good Wine Co.
Classification: Dry white wine
Varietals: Chardonnay/Sivi Pinot
Appellation: Ritoznoj, Pohorje Foothills, Lower Styria (Štajerska), Slovenia
Vineyards: Chardonnay - 60%, Sivi Pinot - 40%
Density & Yield: 5,000 vines/ha; 2 kg/vine
Annual Production: 5,548 bottles
Alcohol: 11.09%
Climate: Continental, with dry and hot summers, and snowy winters
Terrain: Clay, with smaller amounts of sand and marl. Southern exposure, 400 meters altitude.
Farming: No irrigation. No herbicide. No cultivation. Environmentally friendly and sustainable viticulture, with respect for the land.
Vinification: Chardonnay - Destemmed and pressed. The juice was mixed to evenly distribute the solids and transferred to 500L French oak barrels, 25% new.
Sivi Pinot - pressed directly to older 500L French barrels. Natural yeast fermentation with partial malolactic fermentation. Small sulphur addition in blending. The wine was racked from barrels in August 2019, then lightly filtered and bottled.
Tasting Notes: The 'Ritzonoj' tier of wines are the highest quality wines of Heaps Good Wine Co. and the barrel selection of all his vineyards. Nick's work excels in the cellar, perfecting the precise ferments, ageing and blends, and this is most prominent in these wines: nuanced and complex but always so vibrant and elegant. Starting with the 2022 vintage, Nick will begin dedicating his entire production to this level of production. For now, the production is very small while balancing his value-based wines.
The Chardonnay/Sivi Pinot is golden in color with rich fruit mixed with some reductive notes of flint and burnt match. Ripe and mineral, showing apricots, along with a touch of spice, well integrated oak and a strong acid backbone.
Winery Information
Heaps Good Wine Co.
Heaps Good Wine Co. is a small family owned and operated winery producing exceptional wines from Pinot gris, Chardonnay, Pinot noir and Blaufrankisch from the green hills around Slovenska Bistrica in the region of Stajerska in the east of Slovenia.