Amici Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2017
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James
Suckling -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Sliced apples, pears and lightly toasted oak on the nose and palate. Full-bodied, layered and juicy. Lovely, delicious finish.
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Jeb Dunnuck
There are three Chardonnays released in 2017, all being made by Jesse Fox and all outstanding. A smoking value, the 2017 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast was mostly barrel fermented and spent 11 months in 35% new barrels. It has exotic notes of tart citrus, lychee, and hints of minerality as well as a medium-bodied, balanced, lively style on the palate. It’s well worth the price.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Aged in 40% new French oak and already bottled, the 2017 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast has lovely honeyed peaches, apple pie and orange blossom with honeycomb and lemon drops plus croissant nuances. The palate is medium-bodied and very fresh, with a satiny texture and a long, fruity finish.
Other Vintages
2022-
James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
James
Suckling
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker -
James
Suckling
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James
Suckling -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
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James
Suckling
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James
Suckling -
Wine
Enthusiast
Over thirty years in the making, Amici Cellars is a blend of the old and the new. Preserving its legacy and producing wines of exceptional character is the unwavering commitment of proprietors John Harris and Bob Shepard, who attribute success in large part to the age-old adage “nothing replaces hard work,” but also their intuition and ability to capture the most significant opportunity in a decisive moment.
The turning point was 2009, when after more than 15 years of making wine as a passion project with modest distribution, the two friends fully committed to taking their adventure and turning it into a prestigious Napa Valley winemaking estate. The United States was facing the biggest economic downturn since the 1930s, costly Cabernets no longer flying off shelves, but John and Bob have always trusted in their intuition and a core belief - bottle beautiful, high quality wines that are accessible to enjoy every day and for age-worthy collections.
They have decidedly chosen a talented team, seasoned winemaker Tony Biagi, a Napa Valley veteran with more than 25-years-experience, and associate winemaker Dante West, a rising star whose energy matches his true-to-varietal wines. Together they bring decades of relationships with outstanding growers in the field that, combined with their craftsmanship, creates the best possible capsule of each vineyard site, a combination of the soil, climate and people who farm it.
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.
A vast appellation covering Sonoma County’s Pacific coastline, the Sonoma Coast AVA runs all the way from the Mendocino County border, south to the San Pablo Bay. The region can actually be divided into two sections—the actual coastal vineyards, marked by marine soils, cool temperatures and saline ocean breezes—and the warmer, drier vineyards further inland, which are still heavily influenced by the Pacific but not quite with same intensity.
Contained within the appellation are the much smaller Fort Ross-Seaview and Petaluma Gap AVAs.
The Sonoma Coast is highly regarded for elegant Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and, increasingly, cool-climate Syrah. The wines have high acidity, moderate alcohol, firm tannin, and balanced ripeness.