6 bottles of Kongsgaard Chardonnay and the perfectly aged library 2008 Hudson Vineyard Syrah.

“These are the most interesting, naturally made wines one will find on Planet Earth.” — Robert Parker

• Only 6 Bottles of Chardonnay · Limit 1

A Personal Note

Dear Artisans,

This is one of those offers where, halfway through, I found myself wondering why I’m even writing and sending this at all.

Every year for the past 17 years, I’ve politely and sweetly asked for any pittance of an allocation of these wines. I just now got 6 bottles of the Chardonnay and 12 bottles of the perfectly aged library 2008 Syrah.

The limit of 1 bottle on the Chardonnay is annoying, and I’m sorry about it. I’m only going to make 6 different people happy, and tens of thousands of people unhappy.

Why Everyone Wants Them

Kongsgaard makes around 1,500 cases of the Chardonnay and 250 cases of the Syrah for the world. Unfortunately, the world has internet access, and has read countless times how these are the greatest wines on the planet.

There is a reason these mythical, coveted unicorns have earned 84 ratings between 97 and 100 points, nine of them perfect 100s, with more coming as long as John Kongsgaard is alive and crafting his liquid magic. Robert Parker put it this way: “John Kongsgaard is in search of the Holy Grail and these are the most interesting, naturally made wines one will find on Planet Earth.”

A Wizard Taught by Legends

Parker called him “part viticultural evangelist, part wine wizard and part musical composer.” John’s mentors were all legends themselves: Fred McCrea of Stony Hill, where John also worked, Warren Winiarski of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, and André Tchelistcheff of Beaulieu Vineyard.

“André Tchelistcheff was our near neighbor on Stonecrest Drive,” John recalls. “He and my dad, the Judge, and my mother were social friends.” It was Tchelistcheff who told the family to plant Chardonnay.

Into Burgundy’s Greatest Cellars

As winemaker at Newton, John was sent to Burgundy by Peter Newton, and finagled his way into three cellars: Coche-Dury, Bonneau du Martray and Comtes Lafon, all making some of Burgundy’s defining white wines. He came home and created the defining unfiltered Newton Chardonnay, one of the first modern California whites bottled without filtration. When a top Burgundy négociant visited his cellar and sniffed that the wines tasted “like Lafon in the 1980s,” nothing could have been higher praise.

His Newton cellar became a school. Aaron Pott went on to Quintessa; Andy Erickson to Screaming Eagle and Dalla Valle, and with his wife, viticulturist Annie Favia, to Mayacamas; Nick Peay to Peay Vineyards; Blair Walter to Felton Road in New Zealand; and vineyard managers Lupe and Hugo Maldonado to their own Calistoga label.

Death and Resurrection

What sets John apart is what Parker calls his “death and resurrection” winemaking. Nobody else does it. The ripe grapes are pressed with only a tiny dose of sulfur, about a fifth of what he learned to use in the 1970s, and the juice turns dark brown from oxygen. Fermentation starts on its own, from native yeasts, and nothing else is added.

Then comes death, or at least deep risk: the fermentation can take a year, and the wine often grows murky and dull. Then, resurrection. Over nearly two years it bounces back, turning a glinting yellow and revealing its sheer power. As his son Alex puts it, “It’s a moment of faith.”

Corton-Charlemagne Cuttings & Hudson Vineyard

Parker wrote that Kongsgaard’s Chardonnay is made from “an Old Wente clone of Chardonnay that is believed to have come from cuttings of the Corton-Charlemagne holdings of Louis Latour at least fifty years ago.” The Napa Valley bottling is typically a blend of the Hyde and Hudson vineyards in Carneros.

The Syrah comes from a special 3-acre parcel of Lee Hudson’s Hudson Vineyard, planted in volcanic soils. Hudson has been John’s key grape farmer since his first vintage at Newton, and his friend since they both attended UC Davis. Hudson fruit is also behind Arietta, the label John co-founded with auctioneer Fritz Hatton.

Below the two Kongsgaards, I have lined up the other most legendary Chardonnays on the planet.

James Tran

Artisan Wine & Spirits

Why This Matters

The Seven Wines At A Glance

Two Kongsgaards, then five of the planet’s most legendary Chardonnays.

Kongsgaard · Only 6 Bottles · Limit 1

2024 Kongsgaard Chardonnay

California’s Montrachet, from Old Wente vines.

Old Wente CloneDeath & Resurrection6 Bottles

2024 Kongsgaard Chardonnay

Napa Valley · Chardonnay

Kongsgaard’s Napa Valley Chardonnay is typically a blend of the Hyde and Hudson vineyards in Carneros. The critics have not published on the 2024 yet; Antonio Galloni called the 2023 a total stunner.

Kongsgaard · Library Release

2008 Kongsgaard Hudson Vineyard Syrah

California’s Hermitage, perfectly aged.

Hudson VineyardVolcanic SoilsLibrary 2008

2008 Kongsgaard Hudson Vineyard Syrah

Carneros, Napa Valley · Syrah

From a special 3-acre parcel of the Hudson Vineyard planted in volcanic soils. Stephen Tanzer reported that John Kongsgaard said the 2008 “rose up a year ago to out-energize the 2007.”

The Other Legends

The Most Legendary Chardonnays on the Planet

Five more, each with a story as good as the wine.

Hyde de Villaine · The DRC Connection

2023 HdV Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay

We call it the DRC Montrachet of Napa.

Aubert de VillaineOld Wente & CaleraFirst Vintage 2000

2023 HdV Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay

Carneros, Napa Valley · Chardonnay

HdV brings together Larry Hyde, whose Carneros vineyard also supplies Kongsgaard, and the de Villaine family of Burgundy. Aubert de Villaine is co-director of the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. Since the first vintage in 2000, the flagship has come from two selections of Hyde Chardonnay, Old Wente and Calera, on vines 28 to 40 years old, bottled unfined and unfiltered.

Arterberry Maresh · Dundee Hills

2023 Arterberry Maresh Chardonnay

The original Wente selection, planted in 1983.

Planted 1983Original Wente240 Cases

2023 Arterberry Maresh “Maresh Vineyard” Chardonnay

Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley · Chardonnay

The Maresh family has farmed the Red Hills of Dundee for three generations, since 1959. Jim Maresh makes this Chardonnay from a block planted in 1983 to the original Wente selection, before the clone was heat-treated. Wine Spectator counted just 240 cases.

by Farr · Only 5 Bottles

2024 by Farr Chardonnay

A cult Chardonnay from Victoria, Australia, with Burgundy in its blood.

Domaine Dujac TrainedGeelong, Victoria5 Bottles

2024 by Farr Chardonnay

Geelong, Victoria, Australia · Chardonnay

Gary Farr learned his craft at Domaine Dujac in Burgundy, Cristom in Oregon and Calera in California, and his son Nick followed him to Cristom, Au Bon Climat and Dujac. Training with Dominique Lafon inspired the family’s wines. I was only allocated 5 bottles.

Ridge · Monte Bello

2024 Ridge Monte Bello Estate Chardonnay

The ultimate American icon.

100% Monte BelloLimestone1,500 Cases

2024 Ridge Monte Bello Estate Chardonnay

Santa Cruz Mountains · Chardonnay

Every grape comes from Ridge’s Monte Bello Estate Vineyard, 1,400 to 2,000 feet up in the Santa Cruz Mountains on fractured limestone. Wine Spectator reports only 1,500 cases made.

Peter Michael · Knights Valley

2024 Peter Michael La Carrière Chardonnay

The cult estate where Mark Aubert and Luc Morlet made their names.

Aubert & Morlet AlumniVolcanic SlopesUnfiltered

2024 Peter Michael Chardonnay “La Carrière”

Knights Valley, Sonoma · Chardonnay

Before founding their own cult labels, Mark Aubert (through 1999) and Luc Morlet (2001 to 2005) made the wines at Peter Michael. La Carrière, French for “the quarry,” sits between 1,200 and 1,700 feet on rocky volcanic slopes exceeding forty percent in grade, and gives the lowest yields on the estate. It is bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The Bottom Line

17 years of asking, 6 bottles of Chardonnay.

Kongsgaard is California’s Montrachet and Hermitage, made by a wizard who learned from Tchelistcheff, Winiarski and McCrea, and who lets his wines die and come back to life. Six people will get the 2024 Chardonnay, one bottle each, and twelve will get the library 2008 Hudson Vineyard Syrah.

If you miss out, HdV, Arterberry Maresh, by Farr, Ridge and Peter Michael are the most legendary Chardonnays on the planet, and they are in stock now.

Cheers,

— James Tran

Artisan Wine & Spirits

Take Your Pick

• Only 6 Bottles of Kongsgaard Chardonnay · Limit 1

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