100% Chardonnay

Food pairings: White fish, poultry and light pasta dishes, as well as fish tacos and seafood pasta.

Winemaking: The grapes were picked by hand and sorted in the vineyard. Whole-cluster pressing preserved the fruit flavors and fresh acidity, and the wine was fermented in barrel with a combination of native and cultured yeasts. Full malolactic conversion gives silky richness and a medium body. The wine was then aged for eight months in French oak, 25% of it new. Morgan pairs conscientious farming with traditional, minimalist winemaking, aiming for wines that are true to their variety and vineyard and enjoyable upon release.

Vineyards and terroir: The Santa Lucia Highlands appellation lies in the well-drained foothills above the Salinas Valley, where ocean breezes from nearby Monterey Bay cool the vines for a long growing season and gentle ripening. Half of the 2024 cuvée comes from Morgan's certified organic Double L estate, with the balance from outstanding neighbors including the McIntyre, Tondré, Boekenoogen and Panziera vineyards. The vines grow in granitic Chualar and Arroyo Seco loams, and the blend draws on a range of Chardonnay clones (4, 15, 17, Hillside, RR, 76, 95, 96 and 548). The 2024 season began with a wet winter and a cool, windy spring that reduced fruit set; a sunny summer with less fog than usual and moderate temperatures allowed even ripening, and extended hang time led to a classically timed mid-September harvest.

Family and history: Dan Morgan Lee left UC Davis in 1978 for a winemaking position at Jekel Vineyard in Monterey County, and in 1982 he and Donna George founded Morgan Winery. In 1986 they made their first red wines, including Pinot Noir from what would become the Santa Lucia Highlands appellation, established in 1991. In 1996 Dan and Donna Lee bought bare ground in the Highlands and developed it into the Double L Vineyard, named for their twin daughters, the "Double Luck Twins." Its first wines were bottled in 2000, and in 2002 it became the first certified organic property in the Santa Lucia Highlands. Dan was named Winemaker of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle in 2003, and in 2018 the second generation, his daughter Jackie, joined the winery team.

In the pictures: A harvest moon over vineyards near Soledad in Monterey County (photo: Hahn Family Wines, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons). Vineyards and farms in the Salinas Valley near Soledad (photo: Hahn Family Wines, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons).