Wine of the week: Barra of Mendocino, 2020 Chardonnay, Mendocino

Randy Meyer said creating wines from organically grown grapes requires him to harness his inner MacGyver.

“My favorite analogy comparing conventional to organic winemaking is the size of the toolbox,” said Meyer, the winemaker who crafted our Thanksgiving wine of the week winner — the Barra of Mendocino, 2020 Chardonnay, Mendocino, 14%, $22.

“Conventional winemaking has access to the entire Snap-On tool truck. Organic winemaking has access to a Leatherman tool — that’s it. They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. An organic winemaker must embrace this wisdom.”

As for the winning chardonnay, it’s a chardonnay lover’s chardonnay. It’s complex, with layered notes of creme brulee, white peach and honeysuckle. Finishing with a kiss of caramel, this chardonnay is blousy but kept in check with its minerality and crisp acid.

“My mantra is fruit first, oak second,” Meyer said. “We’re really trying to show that pure expression of the chardonnay grape with the oak acting as a supporting character versus the star of the show. Our goal is to deliver a balanced wine with good structure that you can enjoy all by itself or as a complement to your meal.”

The winemaker said what makes the Barra chardonnay a standout is the pedigree of the grape.

“Because all of our wines are made from organically farmed, estate-grown fruit, we’re able to pick and choose from the cream of the crop,” Meyer said. “We grow a total of 50 acres of chardonnay, so for this wine we were able to select the specific blocks from the home ranch in Redwood Valley that delivered the optimal pH and sugar levels.”

Another factor in the wine’s favor, he said, is how well integrated it is.

“We feel that with this wine we really dialed in that perfect marriage of fruit and oak,” he said. “This is 100% chardonnay that was aged for seven months in 25% new French oak (Marchive, Radoux and Francois Freres barrels). We went for that longer, delicate toast profile that allowed the oak to integrate in a balanced way versus overpowering the wine.”

Meyer, 59, is the director of winemaking and operations for Barra of Mendocino and Girasole Vineyards. He’s also at the helm of the winery’s custom crush and storage facility, Redwood Valley Cellars. He went to UC Davis and earned a bachelor’s degree in fermentation science in 1986. His credits include 23 years at F. Korbel & Bros., where he began as a cellar worker. But after a year in the cellar, Meyer rose through the ranks and was promoted to enologist.

Four years later, he become the original brewer at Korbel’s Russian River Brewing Co. Before leaving Korbel, he held the post of winemaker, business analyst and director of grower relations.

He joined Barra in June of 2019. Meyer said Mendocino County is his favorite wine-growing region.

“For quality and value, Mendocino County can’t be beat,” he said. “For Barra and our consumer, it’s a winning combination.”

You can reach wine writer Peg Melnik at peg.melnik@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5310.