Ferren Wines

Frei Road, Chardonnay, 2021

Name: Frei Road, Chardonnay
Brand: Ferren Wines
Price: 575.12 GBP

94+/100

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

95/100

Vinous

Available Vintages

all 2021

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in bond

portfolio

2021
6x75cl
DP
£575.12

Justerini & Brooks Tasting note

Invariably exciting, the 2021 Frei opens up with vivid, high-definition fruit on the nose, grapefruit pith and citrus oil, and a smoky note too. Frei is always the vineyard with the highest acidity and the focus that brings makes for a thrilling wine, giving a keen edge to the fruit and an overall sense of energy. The combination of ripe fruit, with salt and energy shot through it is irresistible. Matt Courtney’s Frei Road comes from the famed Martinelli Zio Tony vineyard, the very same site that Marcassin pulled fruit from. A single clone, Dijon 548 makes up the blend. This vineyard has been farmed by the Martinelli family for generations and continues to be tended by George Martinelli. A mild climate graces this corner of Sonoma, and Chardonnay grapes ripen slowly in the well-draining Goldridge soil. Located near the village of Graton in the rolling hills south of the Russian River, Frei Road Vineyard produces a wine of great complexity, tension, and minerality.

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GUARANTEED PROVENANCE

Provenance in fine wine

When it comes to purchasing wine, provenance is of upmost importance. A wine’s history – where it’s sourced from and how it’s been stored – can have an enormous influence on the eventual enjoyment it provides. At Justerini & Brooks, we can trace nearly every case back to the domaine, estate or Château it originally came from; we ship from over 200 wine producers throughout the world.

Wines not bought directly from the vineyard are either sourced from trusted suppliers, with whom we share the same philosophy and rigour in buying, or from our own network of Cellarers customers. These customers’ wines are stored in optimal conditions in Octavian Corsham and, in the vast majority of cases, have been stored by us since the wine was first shipped. We do not purchase wine from auctions.

We feel it is equally important to for our customers that the case they buy and leave in storage with us is exactly the same case they subsequently have delivered. This may sound obvious and straightforward, yet we are one of very few merchants to have taken measures to ensure this.

We have created a system where every case is independent, thereby ensuring a trail of ownership and peace of mind for every customer.

The Journey

Justerinis ensures that every case of wine stored with Cellarers (Wines) Ltd has a unique identifier and customer’s name, almost unheard of in the industry as it is expensive to administer. These details are printed and placed on every case which is logged and recorded under your account name and kept in the world’s most renowned storage facility, Octavian Corsham.

This information is sent from our systems to the warehouse every day to ensure the trail of ownership is verified and upheld.

While customer reserves are stored in Corsham, our physical stocks are kept in Hoddesdon, further providing a geographical separation between customers’ wines with Cellarers and Justerinis’ own stock.

Further Reassurance

Cellarers (Wines) Ltd is a legally separate limited company from Justerini & Brooks which currently holds approximately £450 million worth of customer reserves. It is fully insured to catastrophic loss. Many merchants will state that wine in their care is fully insured, but in reality this is on an individual case basis with insufficient cover for total loss as this is prohibitively expensive. The cover provided by Octavian and Justerini & Brooks is unmatched.

Cellarers (Wines) Ltd is audited by PwC every year.

Critic Reviews

94+/100

Erin Brooks,

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2021 Chardonnay Frei Road Vineyard opens with wafts of matchstick that give way to citrus peel, almonds, gravel dust and creme fraiche aromas. The light-bodied palate is driven by firm, linear acidity. It's packed to the brim with citrusy flavors, and it has a long mineral-driven finish. Reminiscent of Chablis, this shimmery Chardonnay will be long lived in the cellar.

drinking window 2025 - 2040

date of review 10/2024

95/100

Antonio Galloni,

Vinous

The 2021 Chardonnay Frei Road Vineyard is an explosive, heady wine. It is also a terrific example of how much the Ferren style has shifted away from the outright opulence of the first years. Tangerine peel, passionfruit, white flowers and mint soar from the glass. A hint of reduction lingers on the steely finish. All this needs is time.

drinking window 2025 - 2031

date of review 02/2024

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Specifications

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abv:

14.5%

allergen information

This product may contain sulphites. Full allergen information is available upon request, please call our Customer Relations Team on +44 (0)20 7484 6430.