Winemaker Notes
Lush and forward, this is a wine to drink now with scallop and crab dishes, or fresh creamy cheeses to match the texture and counterpoint the brightness.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Silky, fresh, and long from a vineyard planted in 1969 on Goldridge series soil, this lush wine shows tropical notes with foral hints.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2016 Dutton Goldfield Rued Vineyard Chardonnay brings excellent ripeness to the table. TASTING NOTES: This wine is bright and redolent of fully-ripened fruit. Its alluring aromas and flavors of Red Delicious apples and faint floral notes should pair well with roast turkey, topped with crispy bacon. (Tasted: September 9, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Chardonnay Rued Vineyard comes from a well-known site in the Russian River and spent 17 months in 50% new French oak. It has classy notes of spiced citrus, pineapple, and toasted bread as well as a medium-bodied, racy, vibrant style on the palate. It's nicely balanced, has beautiful purity, and a great finish. It's one of the standouts in the lineup.
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James Suckling
A pretty chardonnay with pear drops, cut grass, green mangoes and apricots. Medium-bodied, tangy and focused.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is floral in jasmine and steely on the midpalate—a beautiful white wine that's balanced and elegant in approach. With a good grip of tannin and oak, it shines in sharp flavors of green apple, Meyer lemon and crème brûlée., while the richness is seasoned in nutmeg.
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Wine Spectator
Lithe and minerally, with vibrant flavors of pear tart, apple pastry and crème brûlée that are well-crafted. Hints of dried savory herb emerge on the fresh finish.
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are the mainstays of the Dutton-Goldfield production. Using fruit from carefully chosen vineyards, Dan Goldfield produces wine that reflects the natural tendencies of the area: crisp, well-structured wines that display the complexity, balance and intensity that the partners believe are key to world-class wines.
Dutton-Goldfield Winery's first releases were a Dutton Ranch Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the 1998 vintage. Today Dan and Steve continue to produce Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Dutton Ranch plantings, numerous vineyard-designated wines, as well as small lots of old vine Zinfandel and hillside Syrah. The Dutton-Goldfield wines are crafted using traditional techniques such as barrel and malolactic fermentation for the Chardonnay, and open top fermentation for the Pinot Noir.
The winery is a partnership of friends, colleagues, neighbors and families. The wines reflect this spectacular part of Northern California where the grapes are grown, the superb quality of fruit from perfectly placed and planted vineyards, and the work of an appreciative winemaker.
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.
Situated on the foggier and colder western edge of the Russian River Valley, almost abutting the Sonoma Coast appellation, Green Valley is one of California’s most reputable Chardonnay and Pinot noir producing regions. It is also a wonderful source of sparkling wines made from these varieties.
Goldridge soils abound throughout the Green Valley appellation. This fine, dark, sandy loam and fractured sandstone is derived from the remains of ancient inland seabeds dating back three to five million years. It is valuable for high quality grape growing because of its excellent drainage and low fertility.