Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2012 Chardonnay Larry Hyde & Sons (1,000 cases) comes from a 4-acre vineyard that produces nearly 1,000 cases. The straw color reveals a greenish hue, and the wine bursts from the glass with notes of exotic fruits, wet stones, limes and white peaches. It has a kinship to a great Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne. Complex and full-bodied with stunning purity, richness and acidity, this killer Chardonnay should drink well for 6-10 years.
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Wine Spectator
This unfolds slowly, with a beam of lemon-lime citrus, green apple and honeysuckle flavors, and should reward short-term cellaring, showing hints of vanilla and cream on the finish. The greenest of the Auberts. Drink now through 2020. 875 cases made.
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.
Known for elegant wines that combine power and finesse, Carneros is set in the rolling hills that straddle the southernmost parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties. The cooling winds from the abutting San Pablo Bay, combined with lots of midday California sunshine, create an ideal environment for producing wines with a perfect balance of crisp acidity and well-ripened fruit.
This cooler pocket of California lends itself to growing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Carneros is an important source of sparkling wines made in the style of Champagne as well.