2023 Walter Scott - Chardonnay Willamette Valley La Combe Verte

Walter Scott Wines was launched in 2008 by husband and wife team Ken Pahlow and Erica Landon, who funded their first vintage by emptying their retirement savings to design a label and get started. Their debut wine, the La Combe Verte Pinot Noir, was made at Patricia Green Cellars in exchange for harvest labor, and Ken later worked alongside Dominique Lafon before the couple began making Chardonnay in 2011 out of their base in the Eola-Amity Hills.

La Combe Verte translates loosely to the Green Valley, a nod to the lush Willamette Valley landscape and to the winery's early partnership with Patricia Green Cellars. The 2023 bottling blends fruit from volcanic Eola-Amity Hills sites, old vines from Hyland Vineyard, and the marine sedimentary soils of Freedom Hill. The wine is fermented entirely with native yeast and undergoes full malolactic conversion in large, mostly neutral barrels with minimal batonnage, an approach meant to build texture without heavy oak influence.

This Chardonnay offers fresh apple, lemon, and peach fruit alongside honeysuckle and a light touch of brioche. The palate is rich yet lifted, with bright acidity giving the wine real energy beneath its restrained power. It pairs well with grilled halibut, roast chicken, or a creamy risotto.