Winemaker Notes
The 2022 Carte Blanche UV Vineyard Chardonnay has delicate, yet complex aromas of Asian pear, blanched almond, fresh lemon curd, graham cracker, honey, and orange blossom. The palate is silky, seamless and fresh, with vibrant acidity lifting flavors of lemon bar, pear, and lily of the valley. This is a lovely, delicious wine, with aromatic depth and palate weight building with time in the glass.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming from the Sonoma Coast, the 2022 Chardonnay UV Vineyard reveals a pure, elegant bouquet of stone fruits, orange blossoms, spice, and floral nuances. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has integrated acidity and a balanced, elegant texture. This 100% Chardonnay spent time in 50% new French oak.
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.