La Crema was founded in 1979 and built its reputation on cool-climate, Burgundian-inspired whites and Pinot Noir made in small lots. This bottling draws on Monterey County fruit, principally the Santa Lucia Highlands and the wider Salinas Valley, where afternoon winds funnelling off Monterey Bay hold back ripening and preserve natural acidity. Vines sit on well-drained sandy and gravelly loams over ancient alluvial and marine deposits. The 2023 season across coastal California was unusually cool and late following a wet winter, giving an extended, even hang time that suited Chardonnay, with slow sugar accumulation and bright fruit retained through a gentle, prolonged growing season.

Fruit was picked in the cool of the morning across multiple pick dates to capture a range of ripeness, then whole-cluster pressed to protect delicacy and limit phenolic pick-up. The juice was settled and fermented in a mix of stainless steel and French oak barrels, a portion of them new, to build texture without overt oak. A measured malolactic fermentation softened the acidity, and the wine was aged on its lees with periodic stirring to add breadth and a subtle creaminess. Blending across lots was used to balance citrus drive against riper tropical and stone-fruit notes before a light fining and bottling.