Winemaker Notes
This focused, elegant chardonnay features aromas of pineapple, citrus, and honeysuckle, complemented by flavors of lemon, yellow apple, and a hint of salted caramel on the palate.
Incredibly food-friendly, the Highland Chardonnay is a perfect match for white fish, poultry, and light pasta dishes.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A more classically oaked, traditional white, the 2024 Chardonnay Highland is from half-Double L estate grapes, half sourced from the likes of Boekenoogen, McIntyre, Panziera, and Tondre. Not as hot a vintage as 2022 and not as long as 2023, it’s a medium-bodied, well-mannered wine with tastes of key lime, apple, and fresh acidity, with hints of oak space interlaced throughout, aged eight months in French oak, 25% new.
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.
Perhaps the most highly regarded appellation within Monterey County, Santa Lucia Highlands AVA benefits from a combination of warm morning sunshine and brisk afternoon breezes, allowing grapes to ripen slowly and fully. The result is concentrated, flavorful wines that retain their natural acidity. Wineries here do not shy away from innovation, and place a high priority on sustainable viticultural practices.
The climatic conditions here are perfectly suited to the production of ripe, rich Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. These Burgundian varieties dominate an overwhelming percentage of plantings, though growers have also found success with Syrah, Riesling and Pinot Gris.