Winemaker Notes
The gorgeous nose captivates the senses with a kaleidoscope of aromas. Notes of fresh pineapple, yellow apple, musk melon, and citrus all mix with wood spice elements. Crushed rocks and minerals belie the fruit notes adding further intrigue to the nose. The palate offers a density and richness of fruit and a compelling tannin structure. Minerals on the finish complete the picture in this full-package wine.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Chardonnay Heintz Vineyard offers exuberant spices on the nose with a core of lush, floral-laced peach fruit. Medium-bodied and satiny, the palate is dynamic, expanding from a precise mineral beginning to a broad, open, toasty finish. It's uplifted and pure and hints at more to come with time in bottle. Rating: 95+
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Wine Enthusiast
Floral on the nose and textured in wet stone, this coastal-influenced white is high-toned in grapefruit, lime and oyster shell, with a soul of the sea. An elegant structure shows freshness that persists and helps to tame the contrasting notes of baking spice and tea.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
On first nosing relatively tight and fairly reluctant compared to its same-vintage cellar mate from the Olivet Lane Vineyard, but gradually gaining in fruity volume with well defined elements of ripe, oak-enriched apples, sweet citrus and highlights of minerals slowly coming into play and a solid and structured Chardonnay in the mouth that is a bit constrained by its youth, this deep, but still-somewhat-nascent offering has the pieces in place to broaden and grow richer with age. While its partner asks for another year or two of cellaring, it should be laid away for at least twice as long.
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.