Winemaker Notes
The color is a beautiful yellow with a green glint. Notes of lime and quince are immediately apparent at first nosing, but then hints of flowers and smoky minerals emerge. Green apple rounds out this wonderfully aromatic wine, and the palate is no less interesting with zesty lime and Granny Smith apple flavors. A rather full-bodied palate, even without the oak, owing to the excellent vineyard sourcing and lees stirring. Minerals and an impression of iodine on the palate add depth and interest, while the finish is snappy and clean.
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: In a world filled with "Unoaked Chardonnays." many producers make ordinary wines—the 2019 Williams Selyem Unoaked Russian River Valley Chardonnay stands on its own pedestal. TASTING NOTES: This wine is expressive from start to finish with aromas and flavors of green apple, mineral notes, and chalk. Enjoy its richly-textured palate with roast chicken over a bed of fresh lettuces and an accent of basil leaves. (Tasted: January 15, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Unoaked Chardonnay has a lovely purity this vintage, with detailed pears, quince, flowers and roasted almonds on the nose. The palate is light-bodied, silky and crisp with floral-laced flavors and loads of bright, juicy uplift on the long finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is made from older vines, which show some of the grip not provided by oak. It is citrus-driven, with pomelo, quince and peak flavors framed by the youthful exuberance of fresh acidity alongside accents of wet stone and spice.
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.