Lang & Reed Chenin Blanc, Oak Knoll District, Napa Valley, California 2024
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Lang & Reed was founded in 1993 by Tracey and John Skupny, former Kansas City sommeliers who arrived in Napa Valley in 1980 and fell in love with Loire Valley varieties — Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc — during formative years tasting and working in French wine. Named for their two sons, Lang & Reed has operated from St. Helena for over thirty years with an unwavering focus on these two grapes. Their son Reed Skupny joined the winemaking team after working at Pahlmeyer, Mudhouse in Marlborough, and Domaine Bernard Baudry in Chinon before taking over as head winemaker at Elyse Winery in 2023. The Oak Knoll District bottling is Lang & Reed's most rarefied Chenin Blanc: tiny production, single barrel, sourced from one of Napa Valley's last remaining Chenin Blanc plantings in an appellation where the variety was once ubiquitous, with over 3,000 acres planted as recently as 1980. It is the only Chenin Blanc ever to appear at Premiere Napa Valley.
- WINEMAKER: John Skupny and Reed Skupny
- FARMING: Organically farmed. Ryan's Vineyard, Oak Knoll District, Napa Valley. Farmed by Jim Verhey. Entav Inra Clone 982 vines on historic St. George rootstock.
- VARIETY: 100% Chenin Blanc
- TERROIR: The Oak Knoll District sits at the cool southern end of Napa Valley, where marine breezes and morning fog from San Pablo Bay create one of the appellation's most temperate growing environments. Ryan's Vineyard, named for owner Jim Verhey's son, is located near the Napa River on well-drained gravel and clay alluvial soils. Warm afternoons and crisp nights preserve natural acidity while allowing full fruit development. Chenin Blanc was once the most widely planted white variety in Napa Valley; fewer than 20 acres remain today, making this site an increasingly rare and historically significant source.
- VINIFICATION: Whole cluster pressed. Juice settled before barrel transfer. Collaborative fermentation and vinification by John and Reed Skupny.
- AGING: 14 months in a single lightly toasted Burgundian French oak barrel. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.
- TASTING NOTES: Effusive aromas of stone fruit, wild honey, lanolin, and jasmine. Rich and silky on the palate with yellow peach, tropical citrus, and honeycomb, balanced by mouthwatering brightness and a long, saline mineral finish. Highly aromatic, layered, and built for the cellar.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Lobster, foie gras, roast pork with fruit, aged Comté, seared scallops with cream sauce.
Lang & Reed Chenin Blanc, Oak Knoll District, Napa Valley, California 2024
Lang & Reed was founded in 1993 by Tracey and John Skupny, former Kansas City sommeliers who arrived in Napa Valley in 1980 and fell in love with Loire Valley varieties — Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc — during formative years tasting and working in French wine. Named for their two sons, Lang & Reed has operated from St. Helena for over thirty years with an unwavering focus on these two grapes. Their son Reed Skupny joined the winemaking team after working at Pahlmeyer, Mudhouse in Marlborough, and Domaine Bernard Baudry in Chinon before taking over as head winemaker at Elyse Winery in 2023. The Oak Knoll District bottling is Lang & Reed's most rarefied Chenin Blanc: tiny production, single barrel, sourced from one of Napa Valley's last remaining Chenin Blanc plantings in an appellation where the variety was once ubiquitous, with over 3,000 acres planted as recently as 1980. It is the only Chenin Blanc ever to appear at Premiere Napa Valley.
- WINEMAKER: John Skupny and Reed Skupny
- FARMING: Organically farmed. Ryan's Vineyard, Oak Knoll District, Napa Valley. Farmed by Jim Verhey. Entav Inra Clone 982 vines on historic St. George rootstock.
- VARIETY: 100% Chenin Blanc
- TERROIR: The Oak Knoll District sits at the cool southern end of Napa Valley, where marine breezes and morning fog from San Pablo Bay create one of the appellation's most temperate growing environments. Ryan's Vineyard, named for owner Jim Verhey's son, is located near the Napa River on well-drained gravel and clay alluvial soils. Warm afternoons and crisp nights preserve natural acidity while allowing full fruit development. Chenin Blanc was once the most widely planted white variety in Napa Valley; fewer than 20 acres remain today, making this site an increasingly rare and historically significant source.
- VINIFICATION: Whole cluster pressed. Juice settled before barrel transfer. Collaborative fermentation and vinification by John and Reed Skupny.
- AGING: 14 months in a single lightly toasted Burgundian French oak barrel. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.
- TASTING NOTES: Effusive aromas of stone fruit, wild honey, lanolin, and jasmine. Rich and silky on the palate with yellow peach, tropical citrus, and honeycomb, balanced by mouthwatering brightness and a long, saline mineral finish. Highly aromatic, layered, and built for the cellar.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Lobster, foie gras, roast pork with fruit, aged Comté, seared scallops with cream sauce.