Foxglove Chardonnay 2009
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Robert
Parker
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This terrific portfolio of values is led by Foxglove’s remarkable 2009 Chardonnay, a non-oaked, stainless steel-fermented and aged white that sees no malolactic fermentation. Moreover, there are 30,000 cases of this beauty, a blend of two-thirds Santa Barbara County fruit and the rest from Paso Robles and further north in Monterey. It exhibits crisp honeyed lemon, citrus, poached pear, and honeysuckle notes intermixed with a hint of pineapple. However, it is the zesty acidity, stunning purity, and delightful balance this naked Chardonnay possesses that make it so appealing. Enjoy it over the next year.
Other Vintages
2011-
Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
Edna Valley, a relatively small appellation, grows mostly Chardonnay on about 1000 acres. The entire acreage is tightly controlled by a few owners employing the most up-to-date vineyard practices that give the valley impressive evenness. Located just south of San Luis Obispo, its vineyards are some of California's closest to the Pacific Ocean. Mild winters, cool, foggy summer, and clay-loam soils produce a combination of flavors that have been described as "textbook Central Coast."
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
The largest and perhaps most varied of California’s wine-growing regions, the Central Coast produces a good majority of the state's wine. This vast California wine district stretches from San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara along the coast, and reaches inland nearly all the way to the Central Valley.
Encompassing an extremely diverse array of climates, soil types and wine styles, it contains many smaller sub-AVAs, including San Francisco Bay, Monterey, the Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley.
While the Central Coast California wine region could probably support almost any major grape varietiy, it is famous for a few Central Coast reds and whites. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are among the major ones. The Central Coast is home to many of the state's small, artisanal wineries crafting unique, high-quality wines, as well as larger producers also making exceptional wines.