Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This rich, creamy Chardonnay has fine acidity, while a touch of neutral oak adds a background of buttered toast. But the fruit stars, brimming with papayas, mangos, Meyer lemons, limes and pineapples. The finish is filled with honey, and yet is brisk and dry.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2009 Chardonnay emerges from the glass with apricots, flowers and sweet honey. It shows gorgeous roundness all the way through to the 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.