Winemaker Notes
Bright with pale gold color. Flavors of white peach, toasted almonds and mango are highlighted. Bright acidity, this is a fresh and vibrant wine with a subtle creaminess on the finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of chalk and flowers, such as chrysanthemums, and subtle green apples. Salty, too. Medium to full body with lively density and balance. Clear and beautiful. Like morning dew.
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Vinous
The 2020 Chardonnay Dimandes Grande Reserve comes from Campo Los Andes, Uco Valley, and spent 12 months aging in French barrels, 50% of them new. Pale green in the glass. The intense, complex nose presents cedar, vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, creamed corn and pear. The oaky flavors continue in the mouth, where the wine starts out indulgently with a packaged flow that is sculpted by the wood while maintaining a fruity character. The finish, however, is dominated by toasted almonds and caramel. A well-executed exercise in style.
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.
With a winning combination of cool weather, high elevation and well-draining alluvial soils, it is no surprise that Mendoza’s Uco Valley is one of the most exciting up-and-coming wine regions in Argentina. Healthy, easy-to-manage vines produce low yields of high-quality fruit, which in turn create flavorful, full-bodied wines with generous acidity.
This is the source of some of the best Malbec in Mendoza, which can range from value-priced to ultra-premium. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Chardonnay also perform well here.