Winemaker Notes
The aroma jumps out of the glass with notes of hazelnut, toast, tarragon, and Meyer lemon. Is the wine sour and fresh or rich and creamy? It is both! The taste is full of flavors like brioche, brown butter, toasted pine nuts, tarragon, and warm lemon tart. The finish is long, rich, and bright.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This unfiltered Chardonnay explodes from the glass with brilliant aromas of fresh lime peel, orange blossom, chalk and green pear. The palate displays all of that acid-driven freshness, with flavors of juicy tangerine and flowers leading to a finish with echoes of salty lime zest.
Editors' Choice -
Wine Spectator
Shows a mouthwatering, vivid and rich mix of apple pastry, toasted brioche and peach preserves on a firm and appealing frame. Details of lemongrass and lemon cream join a touch of nutmeg, along with toasted and salted hazelnut notes that linger on the finish. Drink now through 2037.
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 standout region for its decidedly Californian take on Burgundian varieties, the Russian River Valley is named for the eponymous river that flows through it. While there are warm pockets of the AVA, it is mostly a cool-climate growing region thanks to breezes and fog from the nearby Pacific Ocean.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir reign supreme in Russian River, with the best examples demonstrating a unique combination of richness and restraint. The cool weather makes Russian River an ideal AVA for sparkling wine production, utilizing the aforementioned varieties. Zinfandel also performs exceptionally well here. Within the Russian River Valley lie the smaller appellations of Chalk Hill and Green Valley. The former, farther from the ocean, is relatively warm, with a focus on red and white Bordeaux varieties. The latter is the coolest, foggiest parcel of the Russian River Valley and is responsible for outstanding Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.