Winemaker Notes
Aromas and flavors of golden apple, citrus, orange zest, lemon meringue, baked pear, vanilla, beeswax, croissant, baking spices and toasted oak.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2020 Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard is exquisite. Bright and vibrant to the core, the Bien Nacido is super-complex and also expressive of site. Lemon confit, white flowers, mint, apricot and light tropical accents lend nuance to this creamy, supremely balanced Chardonnay from Fess Parker. The 2020 is impressive.
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Wine Enthusiast
The delicate yet detailed nature of this bottling is immensely appealing, starting with aromas of crisp nectarine, blanched almond and sea salt. The palate is quite complex, with familiar lemon zest, white flower and apple peel touches, but also a more exotic streak of ginger.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard brings the quality up a level, offering ripe orchard fruits, white pepper, and some charcoal and mineral nuances. It's medium-bodied and has a fleshy, layered mouthfeel, good acidity, and outstanding length.
Established in 1989, Fess Parker Winery is a multi-generational family owned and operated winery that has a rich heritage in Santa Barbara County. Fess Parker produces premium, small-lot, vineyard designated Burgundian varietals from the Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley as well as Rhône varietals from their organically farmed, SIP Certified estate vineyard.
Outstanding fruit sources, including some of the finest vineyards in the county, coupled with skilled winemaking, led by Blair Fox, form the foundation for the winery’s success. Now three generations in, the Fess Parker Family is proud to carry on Fess’s legacy of wine heritage and hospitality in Santa Barbara.
Fess Parker Winery was proud to be named a Top 100 Winery in the World by Wine & Spirits Magazine in both 2022 and 2023.
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.
With a dry and mild climate cooled significantly by moist ocean fog and breezes, Santa Barbara County is a grape-grower’s dream. Part of the larger Central Coast appellation, Santa Barbara is home to Santa Maria Valley and Santa Ynez Valley. The conditions here provide an opportunity for nearly effortless production of high-quality cool-climate Central Coast wines. This is also the site of the 2004 film Sideways, which caused Pinot Noir’s popularity to skyrocket and brought new acclaim to the region.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the stars of Santa Barbara, producing wines marked by racy acidity. Crisp Sauvignon Blanc and savory Syrah are also important. The region is home to many young and enthusiastic winemakers eager to experiment with less common varieties including Chenin Blanc, Grüner Veltliner, Trousseau Gris, Gamay and Cabernet Franc, making it an exciting area to watch.