Winemaking Philosophy
We entered the world of fine wines during the 1970s – an era of big, rich, buttery, oaky, toasty
Chardonnays that we grew to cherish - and the wine writers and critics came to disparage.
When those same critics successfully bludgeoned our favorite wines to death, convincing the
wineries to produce green, acidic, soulless “food wines” instead, we decided to take matters
into our own hands and recreate the style of wine we love. And so Château Burbank, born in
our garages over 20 years ago, has produced Chardonnay that our friends and family demand,
and have fetched numerous awards in international competition. We are still at it today, but
beginning with the 2002 vintage we are offering our wines to the public.
Winemaking Technique
Santa Barbara County’s cool microclimates produce the lush, tropical fruit flavors and aromas
we like in Chardonnay. Our grapes are hand picked at optimum ripeness from selected
vineyards in the Los Alamos and Santa Maria areas. After crushing into bins, the grapes are
chilled and “cold-soaked” overnight to induce maximum extraction of flavor. The following day
the must is pressed into a refrigerated settling tank for clarification and the clarified juice is
then racked into French oak barrels (primarily new François Freres) for fermentation. After
malolactic fermentation the wine is periodically stirred while on its lees in barrel, and
maintained topped-up and sulfited. The wine never leaves the barrel until it is time for bottling.
We believe that this “minimalist” approach to winemaking best preserves the fruit of the grape
while enabling a beautiful marriage with the spice and toast of French oak. We also find that
our Chardonnay develops nicely in the bottle for a number of years. For this reason we bottle
age our wines before release for a year or more to allow development of the bouquet.
Flavor and Food
Think of this Chardonnay as a red wine, masquerading as a white. Serve it with full flavored
dishes, such as grilled salmon, roast chicken, pork, turkey or veal. Rich dishes, such as
fettuccini Alfredo also work well.
Serve only slightly chilled – as you would a fine red wine – for optimum flavor and aroma.
$19.50 per bottle, + tax, S&H (10% off on case quantities).
Mastercard and Visa accepted. Phone or e-mail us!
Tom Shudic
(818) 846-2527
tom@chateauburbank.com
Marina Shudic
(707) 792-1415
marina@chateauburbank.com