Winemaker Notes
Both lively and alluring, this impeccably balanced Chardonnay shows its cool-climate coastal roots with tantalizing aromas of zesty green apple, summer grass, and mango. On the palate, energetic acidity adds poise and polish to the vibrant citrus flavors of orange and lemon that linger throughout a long, bright finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This appellation cuvée hits all the classic Chardonnay notes, starting with buttered stonefruit and coconut-flake aromas. Ample acidity and texture frame the familiar peach and brioche flavors of the palate.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2021 Calera Central Coast Chardonnay is bright, active, and true on the palate. TASTING NOTES: This wine offers aromas and flavors of green apples, dried sage, and chalky notes. Pair it with pan-fried, jumbo prawns and linguine with light garlic, wine reduction, cream sauce. (Tasted: March 23, 2023, San Francisco, CA)
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.
The largest and perhaps most varied of California’s wine-growing regions, the Central Coast produces a good majority of the state's wine. This vast California wine district stretches from San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara along the coast, and reaches inland nearly all the way to the Central Valley.
Encompassing an extremely diverse array of climates, soil types and wine styles, it contains many smaller sub-AVAs, including San Francisco Bay, Monterey, the Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley.
While the Central Coast California wine region could probably support almost any major grape varietiy, it is famous for a few Central Coast reds and whites. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are among the major ones. The Central Coast is home to many of the state's small, artisanal wineries crafting unique, high-quality wines, as well as larger producers also making exceptional wines.