Le Pont Neuf Chardonnay by Pont Neuf 2018

Douglas and Mary Danielak created a bridge between the Old World and the New by bringing their Burgundian experiences home to California. By living in Burgundy, attending school, and studying with the Masters, they learned the principles that define great Burgundy: low yields, French clones, distinct terroirs and slow levage.

The life of the ‘Vigneron’ also captured their admiration. In France, the Vigneron is the centre of the complete cycle of winemaking, tending the vines, harvesting and raising the wines, and greeting customers at the cellar door - viticulturist, enologist, and marketing department all in one.

If you are reading this you have probably had that one moment when a Burgundy, Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, left you in amazement, spellbound and wanting the bottle to have no end. There is a certain progression in the appreciation of wine that brings people to these varietals that deliver texture, balance, purity of fruit and captivating aromas as a new definition of strength and intensity. That same progression inspired Douglas and Mary to craft wines with the finesse and balance of Burgundy and the pure intensity of California.

Douglas and Mary Danielak explain, ‘Pont Neuf was born out of the desire to make Californian wines with a French accent; to translate the bold flavours of California with transparency of technique, allowing the character of our own terroir to take the lead in the finished wine. In selecting vineyards for Pont Neuf, we look for single-vineyard sites with comparable quality potential to Premier and Grand Cru vineyards. The clonal selection, climate and farming in each vineyard are key to producing wine that mirrors Burgundian construction after malolactic fermentation. We brought with us those techniques that make wines with distinct personality, wines that move you, a signature that is common to characterful wines of France. Native yeasts, slow and measured malo-lactic fermentation, and a policy of low intervention allow grapes and terroir to tell their story. Those who follow Pont Neuf will find wines of elegance and tradition, graced with the excitement and innovation that is uniquely Californian.’