Winemaker Notes
Surrounding a historic Victorian home built by the Ross family in the late 1850’s, the wine displays aromas of ginger and citrus. Full-bodied palate of Asian pear and toasted brioche with notes of wet stone giving way to a vibrant, lengthy finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
More yogurt undertones to the ripe apples, cream and light toasted oak. Full-bodied, very layered and rich. Even oily with some caramel. Light phenolic tension at the finish. Drink on release.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Chardonnay Ross Station Estate features notes of key lime pie, lemon meringue and white peaches with a subtext of clotted cream, brioche, toasted almonds and a waft of cinnamon. Full-bodied, concentrated and oh-so-decadent in the mouth, the satiny textured palate features bags of citrus and spice flavors with a very long, invigorating finish.
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Wine Spectator
Shows a mastery of rich fruit and jazzy new oak flavors, with smoky, toasty notes and pure fig, melon, anise and nectarineelements, sailing along on the finish. Drink now through 2024.
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.