Winemaker Notes
As the newest addition to the Aubert Estates, the 2019 Park Avenue Chardonnay makes an exhilarating debut with attractive aromatics of citrus oils, green orchard fruit, key lime sorbet, and spiced white tea. The mineral sense and stain on the palate articulate the distinction of the vineyard site. The greenish hue on the edge of the glass is reflective of the wine’s health and youthful splendor. The wine is slightly hazy showing commitment to minimal intervention winemaking.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Chardonnay Park Avenue leaps out of the glass with provocative notes of white peaches, fresh pears, lemon curd and chalk dust plus spicy hints of coriander seed, nutmeg and white pepper. The full-bodied palate is super intense with wonderful tension and lots of mineral accents to the concentrated flavors, finishing with epic length and long-lingering spicy kick.
Tank Sample: 97-100 -
James Suckling
Aromas of ginger, rosemary, lemon curd and a lovely hint of olive oil. The full body balances the bright acidity and minerality, along with ground-spice and herb notes. Lovely creaminess to the texture with a pleasant tannin structure that keeps the wine refreshing. Spicy, too. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Powerfully fresh, with hints of brioche to the rich white fruit and spice flavors that are packed with rich acidity. Creamy midpalate, with a long, mineral-filled finish that shows accents of sage and hints of anise.
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.