Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Barrel-fermentation precedes 12 months of aging in French and Hungarian oak. Scents of verbena and linen precede intriguing notes of green apple, Italian herbs, spiced pear, and vanilla-cedar.
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James Suckling
This has complex aromas of fresh, spiced bread and yellow stone-fruit, and then a praline-like edge to the spritzy palate. Decent structure and depth with a savory, nutty finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Big oak and a touch of reduction show through on the nose of this appellation wine, as full-figured flavors of crème brûlée, pineapple and Gravenstein applesauce play along a gravelly texture. Highlights of nutmeg and ginger spice the fruit well.
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Wine Spectator
An attractive style, reliant on spicy, toasty oak as well as a zesty core of melon, green apple and white peach, maintaining an elegant mouthfeel throughout. Drink now through 2021.
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.