Winemaker Notes
Light gold in appearance, the 2016 Estate Chardonnay offers aromas of freshly churned butter with a hint of rose petal. On the palate, notes of honey-roasted peanuts lead to a rich and toasty finish. Enjoy this Chardonnay with pad thai or chicken piccata in a caper and butter sauce.
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: One has to hand it to Winegrower Brian Talley and his team. Talley Vineyards produces some of California's most treasured wines. The 2016 Estate Chardonnay is a wine lovers' wine. TASTING NOTES: This wine is bright, authentic, and delicious. Its aromas and flavors of active stone fruits and savory spices stay long and lovingly on the palate. Pair it with a salad of organic chicken, ripe peaches, and garden greens. (Tasted: August 19, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
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Jeb Dunnuck
The larger production 2016 Chardonnay Estate is certainly worth your time and money and is a great intro to the wines from this terrific estate. Salted apple, brioche, white flowers, toasted bread, and plenty of classic Central Coast salty minerality notes give way to a medium-bodied, balanced, undeniably delicious Chardonnay that’s perfect for drinking over the coming 4-5 years.
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Wine Enthusiast
This appellation blend is a very downthe- middle style of classic California Chardonnay, with ample amounts of oak, butter, baked lemon and ripe apple on the nose. The palate pairs golden apples with buttercream and a light brush of vanilla, with acid that powers deep into 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.
One of the coolest growing areas in California, the Arroyo Grande Valley runs from the southwest to the northeast, just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean and is part of the Central Coast AVA. Situated so that cold Pacific Ocean air and fog is allowed to filter into the valley, Arroyo Grande also has an incredibly long growing season. Bud break occurs in February in most years with flowering in May and harvest in late September; the area is classified as cool Mediterranean.
These weather factors combined with the soil types—continental and marine rocks, greywacke, limestone, shale and volcanic—create wines with great concentration and fresh acidity. The cooler end of the valley is perfect for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and is a good producer of sparkling wines. The warmer, more inland part of the valley is home to some of California’s oldest Zinfandel vines.