Winemaker Notes
This wine shows great purity of aromas and an uncanny freshness of character. There is plenty of fruit upfront but the most relevant aspect is the mineral angle, as in freshly cut stones and river pebbles. Citrus and green apple aromas are also present heightening the lean nature of it. This wine epitomizes cool climate Chardonnay that can only be achieved from these maritime-influenced vineyards. The palate is bright, clean, and fresh with a remarkable balance of acidity and fruits. Subtlety combined with great energy makes this a quite complex experience. The freshness remains on the palate for quite some time, creating a long-lasting impression marked by loads of citric notes of lemon peel and sour tangerine.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Lots of phenolic tension to the Meyer lemon, ripe green apple, white peach and mineral character. Full-bodied with form and energy. Tangy with just a hint of vanilla. Wente and Clone 4.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming from Cleary Ranch and Joyce Vineyard, the 2022 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast has a bright yellow color and offers a riper profile compared to the 2023. Fresh with aromas of pineapple, preserved lemon, wet stones, and fresh yellow flowers, the palate has a medium to full-bodied frame, but it’s compact and focused. It offers more immediacy in this vintage, but it never feels overripe.
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Wine Spectator
Tangy peach and mango notes up front are expressive and succulent, with accents of orange blossoms and candied ginger alongside fresh acidity. Shows hints of green tea and honey on the mouthwatering finish. Drink now. 1,800 cases made.
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.