Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Lemon cream, beeswax, sea salt and chamomile tea aromas combine for a very compelling and complex nose on this bottling. The palate is creamy at first and then sizzles with sea salt and lemony acidity, finishing with more ocean spray flavors. It's savory, yet fresh.
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Wine Spectator
This plush white features lots of pastry notes, with concentrated flavors of ripe apple, baked pear and dried peach. Offers a richly spiced finish.
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 superior source of California Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills is the coolest, westernmost sub-region of the larger Santa Ynez Valley appellation within Santa Barbara County. This relatively new AVA is unquestionably one to keep an eye on.
The climate of Sta. Rita Hills is a natural match for Chardonnay and Pinot noir, thanks to the crisp ocean breezes and well-drained, limestone-rich calcareous soil. Here, grapes ripen just enough, while retaining brisk acidity and harmonious balance.