Wine & Spirits - December 2013 - (Page 96)

US NEW RELEASES Our blind panels tasted 554 new-release American wines for this issue. Our critics rated 33 as exceptional (90+) and 18 as Best Buys. Within California, Joshua Greene reviews North Coast wines; Luke Sykora reviews Central Coast wines. Patrick J. Comiskey reviews New York, Oregon and Washington wines. Find a complete list of wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com. CA LI FO RN I A W HIT E CHARDONNAY 423258 96 | Flowers $58 2011 Sonoma Coast Camp Meeting Ridge Chardonnay ^ Jason Jardine's team at Flowers farms 21 acres of chardonnay on the crest of Camp Meeting Ridge, the elevations rising from 1,150 to 1,400 feet on the far Sonoma coast. The soils are based on uplifts from the Pacific seabed, pushed up by movements along the San Andreas Fault; the underground is mostly schist, shale and sandstone. The oldest vines on the property were planted by Walt and Joan Flowers in 1991. When Jardine arrived in 2010, he began to implement biodynamic practices to strengthen the expression of the place in the wine and this 2011 takes Camp Meeting Ridge to a new level. It captures the ocean mist in a savory, earthen chardonnay, its mellow richness transforming fine lees, lemon and smoky green tea scents into a harmonious wine that's easy to drink in quantity and still delivers a lot of flavor. The acidity itself is flavorful and persistent, adding to the umami depth. Wrap yourself in a blanket on a beach night in Jenner and this wine will keep you warm. § Flowers Vineyard & Winery, Cazadero, CA 423483 95 | Deovlet $35 2011 Sta. Rita Hills Zotovich Family Vineyard Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^ This is a pitch-perfect take on Sta. Rita Hills chardonnay, a wine that feels almost diamondlike in its multifaceted precision. Zotovich is an extremely sandy site, a quality that winemaker Ryan Deovlet ties to the minerality of wines he tastes from this vineyard. A cool year in a cool climate gave crisp edges to this WINE & SPIRITS DECEMBER 2013 chardonnay's acidity, while judicious leafing on the afternoon side of the vine rows helped the fruit reach maturity, taking the flavors past mere lemony cut into a buoyant, irresistible tangerine ripeness. But the most exciting aspect of the wine is its almost crunchy earthiness, a spice component that suggests exotic tones of tamarind and curry. Impressively long and tension-filled, its coastal salinity would serve a wide range of seafood-ideally a platter of fruits de mer. (87 cases) § Deovlet Wines, San Luis Obispo, CA 423484 93 | Deovlet $35 92 | Flowers River Block, a parcel planted in 1989. It starts off from a tight place, expanding with air to reveal layers of spice, orange blossoms, dried peach and earthiness. The juiciness of the texture gives this a fat richness even as the wine remains clean and compact. Target its umami side at salt and pepper squid. (405 cases) § Gary Farrell, Healdsburg, CA 424140 91 | Thomas Fogarty $56 2010 Santa Cruz Mountains Langley Hill Vineyard Chardonnay ^ A cool site on a steep hillside ten miles from the Pacific, this vineyard is usually Fogarty's last to be picked, and this vintage was the latest in its 27-year history. Half of the 5.25 acres were harvested in passes during the two weeks that followed a late September heat wave; the last of it came in on November 9th. Though it is aged for 18 months in new French oak, the flavors focused instead on cider-apple scents, floral notes and a pale minerality. While there's a gentle textural fatness, the flavors are tight, the structure firm. This should develop well with several years of bottle age. (90 cases) § Thomas Fogarty Winery, Portola Valley, CA $40 2011 Santa Maria Valley Solomon Hills Vineyard Chardonnay ^ The restrained complexity of this bottling from the young Ryan Deovlet puts many overworked chardonnays to shame. It carries the electric, lemony acidity of the sandy Solomon Hills Vineyard, one of the coolest in the Santa Maria Valley. But that liveliness is matched by textural grace, the lees and fruit combining into flavors both round and earthy, bringing to mind pear skin and oyster shells, the finish long and lifted. It would be best with a simple seafood preparation, like shell-on spot prawns. § Deovlet Wines, San Luis Obispo, CA 423255 2011 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ^ This wine's flinty scent suggests it's a little reduced when first poured, reading tight, earthy and austere. Green pear-like fruit emerges with air, gaining precedence as the flintiness opens to cool, mineral-tinged acidity. The texture turns silky while the wine feels energized and completely dry. This will benefit from a year or two in bottle; decant it if you open it now, to serve with any fresh catch. This is a selection from Camp Meeting Ridge with purchased fruit from six vineyards on the western Sonoma Coast. § Flowers Vineyard & Winery, Cazadero, CA 423730 92 | Gary Farrell $50 2011 Russian River Valley Rochioli Vineyard Chardonnay ^ This grows at the Rochioli estate, a hillside rising above a wide meander in the Russian River, sourced mostly from 423587 88 | Courtney Benham $17 85 | Kenwood $14 2012 Santa Barbara County Unoaked Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^ Bright and lemony, this has enough textural richness to match cracked crab. A well-priced, pleasantly understated take on Santa Barbara fruit. (640 cases) § Martin Ray Winery, Santa Rosa, CA 424093 2012 Sonoma County Chardonnay (Best Buy) Ripe and toasty, with a lemony undercurrent, this has enough breadth to match chicken in a mushroom and cream sauce. § Kenwood Vineyards, Kenwood, CA http://www.wineandspiritsmagazine.com https://store.flowerswinery.com/store/index.cfm?fuseaction=productdetail&product_id=336&utm_source=WSMagazine&utm_medium=Link&utm_campaign=WSMagCMRChard http://www.martinraywinery.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - December 2013

Wine & Spirits - December 2013
Editor’s Note
Happenings
Contents
Fined & Filtered
Acid Trips
The Great Whiskey Shortage of 2013
Spirits
Gadgets and Gi
New Destinations
Where to Eat & Drink in Seattle
Turning Champagne into Wine
Barolo & Formaggio
Douro, No Apologies
Walla Walla Cabernet
The Best for $10 or Less
Overview
Champagne
US Sparkling Wine
US Cabernet Sauvignon
Alsace
German Riesling
2011 Vintage Port
Barolo & Barbaresco
Rioja
US New Releases
International New Releases
Wine & Spirits Top 100

Wine & Spirits - December 2013