Ryme Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay 2015
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Parker
Robert
Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The 2014 Chardonnay from Ritchie Vineyard has aromatic notes of citrus, white florals and stone fruit. The palate is broad and textured balanced by refreshing acidity.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard has a drop-dead gorgeous nose of honeyed peaches, guava, pink grapefruit and marzipan with wafts of apple blossoms and beeswax. The palate is medium-bodied with fantastic intensity, packed with stone fruit and citrus flavors with a toasty undercurrent, finishing long and yeasty.
Ryan and Megan started Ryme Cellars in 2007 with one ton of Aglianico. Excited by the intensity and complexity of this wine, they embarked on producing intriguing wines of varieties that they personally enjoy. To date they make two Vermentinos, Ribolla Gialla, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Aglianico under Ryme. In 2011, Ryan and Megan wanted to expand their production to include some great Sonoma County vineyards that produce the type of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that they love to drink. For this task, they created a new label called Verse Wines, as a compliment to the more esoteric Ryme portfolio. With Ryme & Verse, Ryan and Megan aspire to make honest and expressive wines that exhibit the characteristics of the variety and place from which it came.
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.