Winemaker Notes
The alluring 2018 UV-SL is a kaleidoscope of apple oil, lemon confit, crème patissière, and almond croissant lined with a subtle saline note and a touch of talc. With air the tight-knit core grows to reveal seductive flavors of praline, stone fruit preserves, and white flower. Full-bodied and opulent, the compelling UV-SL finishes long and pure. This wine has more to reveal and will age gracefully for 10+ years. The wine is slightly hazy showing our commitment to minimal intervention winemaking.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Chardonnay UV-SL springs from the glass with wonderfully intense notes of candied orange peel, pink grapefruit and white peaches with suggestions of crème caramel and spice cake plus compelling sparks of yuzu zest and wet pebbles. The full-bodied palate is remarkably elegant with a gorgeous satiny texture and fantastic tension delivering a very long, energetic finish.
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James Suckling
Intense aromas of lemon curd, lime zest, white peach, butterscotch and flint. It’s full-bodied and creamy, compact and phenolic. So focused. Crushed flint on a long, mineral and smoky finish. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Lithe, with notes of dried thyme to the Gala apple and pear tart flavors, rich and pure. Toasty accents show mid-palate. The long finish is filled with flinty and minerally components. Best from 2021 through 2026.
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.