Peake Ranch Vineyard Ma Jolie Chardonnay
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2028
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Pan-seared scallops, roasted chicken, creamy mushroom risotto
✨ Technical Specifications
Sourced from the prestigious Peake Ranch Vineyard in the cool-climate Sta. Rita Hills of Santa Barbara County, Paul Lato's 'Ma Jolie' Chardonnay is a masterclass in tension and texture. The name 'Ma Jolie'—meaning 'My Pretty One'—is a nod to Pablo Picasso's famous painting and reflects Lato's deeply artistic approach to winemaking. The vineyard's unique combination of clay loam soils, diatomaceous earth, and intense maritime influence from the nearby Pacific Ocean allows the Chardonnay grapes to ripen slowly, retaining brilliant natural acidity. Crafted with minimal intervention, fermented with native yeasts, and aged in select French oak barrels, this wine beautifully balances rich, stone-fruit concentration with a vibrant, saline minerality that speaks directly to its coastal origin.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 2002 by Polish-born former Toronto sommelier Paul Lato, this boutique Central Coast winery emerged after early mentorship from Au Bon Climat's Jim Clendenen and encouragement from Bien Nacido's Bob Miller. Operating without estate acreage, Lato contracts premier, meticulously farmed plots across premier maritime-influenced cool-climate terroirs, spanning the Santa Maria Valley, Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Lucia Highlands, and Los Carneros. The viticultural philosophy focuses on rigorous yield restriction, physiological maturity, and sustainable management tailored block by block. In the cellar, Lato applies an intuitive, non-interventionist approach with small-lot fermentations, ambient yeast, and sensitive French oak aging to deliver exceptional textural tension, purity, and culinary balance. Celebrated white cuvées—including the Hyde Vineyard Goldberg Variations Chardonnay, Sierra Madre Kokoro Chardonnay, Le Bon Vivant, and O Sole Mio Sauvignon Blanc—stand alongside benchmark Pinot Noir and Syrah as some of California's most critically acclaimed, authentic, and seamless single-vineyard expressions.
🍇 Grapes
Chardonnay
🍷 ABV
14-14.5%