Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Chardonnay Sullivan Vineyard is scented of spicy oak, baked peaches and dried pineapple with wafts of ginger, croissant and honeycomb. Medium to full bodied with a seductively oily texture, it fills the mouth with generous honeyed-peach, tropical fruit and toasty oak flavor, finishing long and spicy. It is delicious now for those that love a little oak expression, otherwise that oak should marry in a year or so, revealing more of an opulent fruit expression. Rating 94(+) Points.
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Wine Enthusiast
Light gold in color, this wine is focused and bright. A jasmine aroma and succulent green-apple flavor pairs with steely minerality, offering power and grace in one satisfying package.
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Wine Spectator
Exhibits a rich mix of spicy oak, butterscotch, fig, honeydew and pear notes, ending with a long, deep finish that echoes the core flavors.
Jim Nantz, famed CBS sports commentator, and Peter Deutsch, founder and CEO of Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits, have created a portfolio of classic Sonoma wines from some of the most respected vineyards in the region.
The Calling wines are now quality standards for the Sonoma region with more than fifty 90+ ratings since the first vintage in 2012. Each region and vineyard site were chosen carefully for the vines that were planted and the style of wine produced. These wines are a true testament to the greatness that is possible when you follow your calling in life.
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.