Walter Scott - Koosah Vineyard Chardonnay 2021

Jeb Dunnuck

Coming from this exceptional vineyard site, which was recently purchased by the Jadot family, the 2021 Chardonnay Koosah Vineyard displays a bright yellow hue and strikes that fine chord between weight and weightlessness. In the glass, it reveals more pronounced and forward aromatics on opening, with flinty wet asphalt, preserved lemon, peach, and elegant baking spice. The palate is supple and rounded, taking on more citrus oils and a lush texture, with savory notes of pine and rocky earth. Long on the palate, its great balance and fantastic energy propel it for days, and it should have tremendous longevity. Drink 2024-2036.
Walter Scott was founded in 2008 by Erica Landon and her husband Ken Pahlow. Their first vintage was produced in 2009 out of Patricia Green Cellars, then at Evening Land, where Ken worked alongside Dominique Lafon. This clearly had an influence on the wines of Walter Scott, where they began producing Chardonnay in 2011. The next year they moved to their current winery space, which is located in front of the Justice Vineyard of the Eola-Amity Hills. They continue to raise the bar across their portfolio and are producing exceptional wines with purity and balance. The wines for this report were tasted at the winery with Ken and his family, and they do not disappoint in the slightest. These are no-question Burgundian-inspired wines, with a reductive style, though for my taste, they are some of the best wines pushing the bar higher and higher in the Eola-Amity Hills.

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2021 Chardonnay Koosah Vineyard is tense and electric, with scents of apple, lemon, saline and flint. The light-bodied palate features concentrated, mineral-laced fruit enlivened by lasery acidity, and it has a long, energetic finish. Give this Chablis-like Chardonnay plenty of time in bottle to unwind.

Wine & Spirits Magazine

Wine Enthusiast

This lighter-bodied Chardonnay displays soft, floral chamomile, lemon balm, tangerine and ginger aromas. Its restrained acidity has no difficulty keeping pace with intense lime and lemon fruit flavors. Additional flavors of fresh basil and warm brioche hover in the background. This is like sipping an icy granita on a hot afternoon.

Vinous