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CHARDONNAY
 The word "Chardonnay" has become synonymous with
"white wine" here in California. People seem to buy virtually anything
labeled "Chardonnay", whether the wines actually taste like Chardonnay or not.
In fact, I often wonder whether the average bear can identify the
character of Chardonnay. This is because many wines produced in California are
subjected to so much oak, either in the form of real barrel aging or some sort of oak
"flavoring" (new staves being introduced into a barrel or tank or oak chips or
sawdust being added -- the laws don't require a winery to disclose this on the
label) that an unwooded Chardonnay doesn't "taste" like Chardonnay to Yogi or
Boo-Boo. Similarly, I have noticed that many tasters describe other white wines as
being "Chardonnay-like" when these are dominated by wood.
The Chardonnay grape was not treated like royalty until a few years ago. Old-timers
such as Inglenook, Christian Brothers, Beaulieu Vineyards and Charles Krug made simple dry
white wines of Chardonnay grapes. The Wente Brothers winery was thought to be at the
vanguard of Chardonnay production, making a fresh, non-oaked dry white wine. In those
days, Chardonnay was thought to be a relative of Pinot Noir and was routinely called
"Pinot Chardonnay." It is, as it turns out, not related, so it's now
called "just" Chardonnay.
 The
first really important work in marrying oak with Chardonnay in the traditional style of
France's Burgundian winemakers started with the Hanzell winery in Sonoma. This was
back in 1957, when James Zellerbach imported French oak barrels for the aging and
maturation of his Hanzell wines. Wonder of wonders! Oak!!!
It's taken many years for winemakers to learn how to use oak in making wine. Some of
them use oak as a crutch, propping up weak, thin wines and overloading them with wood.
Others employ a combination of wood and residual sugar to give character to wines
which are malnourished, wimpy wines. Many of these are quite popular, even
"scoring" highly with those who claim expertise in judging wine.
McDonald's hamburgers are quite popular, too, but few would say those are the best
examples of beef on the planet.
We enjoy a nicely oaked Chardonnay---don't get me wrong. I have been
accused of liking the most woody tasting wines. I cite Napa Valley eno-scribe Bob
Thompson who once wrote something like "My parents marveled that, as a boy, I
ate the fruit and not the tree." He was poking fun at
those who prefer Chardonnays with so much wood that determining if the beverage was
actually made from grapes is impossible.
The Chardonnay grape finds its home in France's Burgundy region, though it also is
cultivated in Champagne. In Burgundy's Cote d'Or, the major appellations of
Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet and Meursault account for the top wines, but
other villages turn out good wines, too. The best Cote d'Or producers barrel ferment
the juice, using, at least, a percentage of new oak cooperage. The wines are often
aged on the spent yeast and this sediment is stirred in barrel, contributing a toasty,
smoky element to the wines. As the juice tends to be rather high in acidity, most
winemakers induce a secondary fermentation (called a malolactic fermentation). This
reduces the acidity and makes the wine rounder, creamier and somewhat buttery in
character.
California vintners make a full range of Chardonnays. At the low end you'll find
wines from the "hotter-than-hell" Central Valley where tonnage is high and the
intensity of character is low. On the higher end, you'll find wines from cooler,
coastal climes, from low-yielding vineyards which can be sublime. Some wineries make
light, crisp, "simple" Chardonnay, while others attempt to emulate the top wines
of Burgundy.
Some winemakers liken Chardonnay to a blank canvas. The character of the
Chardonnay grape is dependant upon its origins, clonal selection, soil type, exposure,
etc. The "seasonings" bestowed upon it during its maturation (oak,
secondary fermentation, etc.) further determine the character of the wine. Some old
clones of Chardonnay display a mildly appley note. Newer ones seem to have a more
tropically-fruity quality.
Diversity and individuality are what make winetasting fun and challenging. Don't
fall into a rut! Be adventuresome and experiment with Chardonnays from
different regions and unknown producers.
Current BEST BUYS
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- OLIVET LANE 2006 Russian River CHARDONNAY
- List $25 SALE
$18.99
 From an outstanding (and famous)
vineyard in the cool Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, this is a smooth, creamy,
vanillin Chardonnay which has been fermented in French oak.
The 2006 vintage is very fine. It's the fifth vintage, I think, produced in
the Pellegrini's own facility. Previously they've rented space at
other wineries and made their wine "on the road." Now they
have their own place and Bob Pellegrini credits this with the improvement in
their wine.
"It's not any one particular thing," he explains. "It's
a lot of little details."
The juice is fermented in French oak. About one-third of the wood is
brand new, the rest being once used barrels and twice used cooperage.
A variety of yeasts are employed in an effort to build in more
complexity. There's a nice creamy note, some vanillin
and butter along with some toasty oak. It's bigger and richer
than its predecessors and is one impressive bottle of California Chardonnay.
Remarkably good!
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GUENOC WINERY
 The
Guenoc winery sure has undergone quite a number of changes over the past few
years. The original owner of the brand sold the place and they've had
one or two changes in management since then.
Guenoc was a good producer at its inception, but over the years they seemed
unable to chose between being a big producer, being a reasonably-priced
producer, being a top quality estate, etc. It was one of these
features, but they didn't seem to combine them very well.
The place is located in Lake County and it's a short ride from Calistoga to
get there...
Today they seem to be working on changing the name to Langtry Estate and the
Guenoc wines are their "modestly-priced," entry level
bottlings. The current management team seems to grasp the idea that
they need to work (a lot) to gain a place in today's ultra competitive
market.
Their Chardonnay is 100% varietal and it's from Lake County fruit. We
find the wine to be a solid value at our special price of $11.99. The
juice is fermented in stainless steel, for the most part, with a small
percentage being fermented in oak. The resulting wine is a nicely
balanced offering, close to dry but not steely and not noticeably
sweet.
Currently in stock: GUENOC 2006 $11.99
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SEBASTIANI VINEYARDS
 The
Sebastiani family seems to have "gotten serious" about making some
good wines.
Here's a magnificent Sonoma County Chardonnay featuring wines from four
different appellations. The cooler climate regions of Carneros and
Russian River have been barrel fermented and the have undergone a secondary,
malolactic fermentation which creates a mildly buttery, creamy
quality. The warmer climate Chardonnays from the Alexander Valley and
Sonoma Valley were fermented in stainless steel at cool temperatures to
retain as much of the aromatics as possible. That portion did not
undergo the secondary fermentation, retaining as much structure and
crispness as you can from these areas.
The resulting blend is a delight, especially in its price category.
You'll find some vanillin notes and some nice oak. Remarkably good for
its ten buck sale price!-
- Currently in stock: 2005 SEBASTIANI "Sonoma" CHARDONNAY
(List $13) SALE $9.99
EDNA VALLEY VINEYARD Started
as a joint venture between the Niven family (who own the Baileyana brand of
wines) and the Chalone group, today Chalone is under the giant drinks
company umbrella of Diageo.
The Edna Valley Vineyard Chardonnay still comes from the famed Paragon
vineyard which is owned by the Nivens. The Edna Valley region is a
marine-influenced area and the relatively cool climate is said to account
for the long "hang time" of the Chardonnay in this
region.
The 2006 Chardonnay is a mildly oaky, moderately creamy, buttery
Chardonnay. It's close to dry and medium-bodied.
Currently in stock: 2006 Edna Valley Vineyard "Paragon"
Chardonnay SALE $10.99
WELLINGTON This
family-operated winery flies well below the radar of most wine
drinkers. They don't make the flashiest wines and they're not a source
of push-the-envelope, over-the-top kind of grape growing. Over the
life span of this winery, we've had a half a dozen wines...
Their 2006 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay is a delight. They have
incorporated a number of clones of Chardonnay into this wine with the idea
of making a more complex wine. It's entirely barrel-fermented and has
undergone a full malolactic fermentation. There's nice oak here, but
it's not woody. We like the aromas and flavors of this mildly toasty,
lightly buttery and dry white.
It's $18 at the winery.
Currently in stock: 2006 WELLINGTON Sonoma Valley CHARDONNAY
$12.99
PRESIDIO WINERY
 Doug Braun has been working diligently to produce really good wines and he offers them at sensible prices, a combination we (as consumers) really appreciate.
This label is well below the radar of most wine geeks and its wines don't have much "buzz" on the internet. It's easy to be lost amidst the huge influx of "garagiste" labels so abundant these days. There are hundreds of new labels today, with all sorts of micro-production wines being vinified, bottled and, maybe even sold. Everybody and his brother and sister are now "in the wine business," buying a barrels' worth of wine and offering their limited, reserve-designated wine. Wine critics pay attention to these little labels because they need to be the first to tout the latest and greatest new wines.
Meanwhile, here's Braun, cultivating acreage in the western part of the Santa Rita Hills appellation and quietly making some of the best wines in the Santa Barbara area.
Vineyards are cultivated along the lines of Burgundian vineyards...high density planting and they're cropped fairly low to the ground to take advantage of the reflective warmth from the earth back on to the vine. The vineyards are farmed biodynamically and their labels, now, have the Demeter certification.
The 2005 Chardonnay is dynamite! The wine is whole-cluster pressed and
the juice fermented in two types of French oak barrels. It's undergone
a complete secondary, malolactic fermentation. Further, the wine spent
ten months on its lees (the yeast sediment) which contributes a toasty
element to the wine. Dry, crisp and full (without being sweet or
flat), here's an excellent wine at a most reasonable price.-
- Currently in stock: 2005 PRESIDIO Santa Barbara CHARDONNAY Sold
Out
HART'S DESIRE
 You
may think the name of this little enterprise is a bit cheesy, but what else
could Desire and John Hart call the place?
We've had a number of their red wines in the shop over the years and
dutifully taste John's attempts at Chardonnay and politely say "Please
send us a few more boxes of the Claret and a couple more of your
Cabernet."
With the 2006 vintage, we were most pleasantly surprised! I called the
winery to ask if Desire had hired a new winemaker or something, since the
wine was so much more complex and full of character than previous bottlings.
What changed was the source of fruit. This new vintage is a blend of
two vineyards. One of the sources is a winery which makes its own
Chardonnay, but used to find it most unsatisfying to sell its wine in retail
shops (they had the idea that restaurant sales were nirvana). Now they
are having difficulty selling their own wine, so they're offering grapes to
competitors.
Anyway, the wine is most impressive, displaying
ripe pear-like notes on the nose along with mildly toasty, creamy tones. We
find this to be medium-full bodied and remarkably complex. It's quite
drinkable, too, being less than 14% alcohol, a relative rarity these days
here in California.
Currently in stock: 2006 HART'S DESIRE Russian River Valley
CHARDONNAY $18.99
Also: The Macon-Charnay of Manciat-Poncet is just $13.99. This is
a delicious bottle of wine. No oak to speak of, but there's really nice
apple-like fruit.
There's a rather nice Hungarian Chardonnay in the shop from a small,
father-and-son team. Not oaked, but nice Chardonnay fruit. $11.99
for that.
Talmard's Macon is just ten bucks and Lamblin's Bourgogne is sale-tagged at
$9.99.
WE TYPICALLY OFFER 5 or 6 CHARDONNAYS FOR SAMPLING IN OUR
TASTING ROOM!
- Wine Tasting Daily.
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