Wine & Spirits - October 2020 - 45

YEAR'S BEST CALIFORNIA CHARDONNAYS
S A N TA C RUZ MOUN TA IN S

winery's estate vineyards, including their 88
acres in Carneros. He allows this chardonnay
to ferment spontaneously, aging it in large
French oak foudres. It has energy in its layered flavors, from bass notes of butterscotch,
toasted shortbread and pineapple just coming into ripeness, to higher tones of lemon
thyme and wildflower honey. A bright green
edge of acidity lifts the richer aspects of the
wine, keeping it mouthwatering and refreshing. -J.G. (979 cases) §

nay made by Stéphane Vivier for California Wineries & Vineyards. It offers scents of
daisies and fresh cream, lending the wine a
springtime sensation. It feels cool in its flavors of orange-zest and lemon, spicy and a
little bitter in its smoky austerity. Decant this
to allow it to open, then pour with a lemony
roast chicken. -J.G. (W&S 2/20; 56 cases) §

521242

94 | Mount Eden

$60

2017 Santa Cruz Mountains Estate Chardonnay ^ Jeffrey and Ellie Patterson's Mount
Eden vineyard is a trove of heritage vines,
including descendants of the chardonnay
cuttings Paul Masson brought from Burgundy in the early 1900s to plant at his La
Cresta Vineyard just to the south. The current generation of vines that bore the Mount
Eden clone were planted in the 1990s, today
yielding a small, concentrated crop that Patterson transforms into an elegant, substantial and complex chardonnay. His 2017 has
shape and structure: It's meaty and rich up
front, tingling with lemon clarity and redapple-skin freshness in the end. Wielding
power without any sense of alcohol or heat,
this vintage has a great future ahead. -J.G.
(4,598 cases) §
518853

90 | Thomas Fogarty

521243

90 | Patz & Hall
521231

92 | BonAnno

$18

2018 Los Carneros Chardonnay (Best
Buy) ^ Matt Bonanno was working at Union
Beverage in Chicago when he started his own
wine label in 2004, working to create valuefocused wines in Napa Valley. This one hits
the mark, a smooth, supple chardonnay with
crunchy grape flavors and a muscular scallop-like fatness to the fruit. It's salty, rich and
a steal at $18. -J.G. (2,000 cases) §

$38

2017 Santa Cruz Mountains Estate Chardonnay ^ Rich and toasty, this wine's smoky
notes and baked-apple flavors meet some
tense malic acidity in the end. That acidity
points up the spiciness of the wine while air
helps it knit into a smooth ending. -J.G.
(W&S 2/20; 1,248 cases) §
521251

90 | Trail Marker

521245

$38

2018 Santa Cruz Mountains Chapel Vineyard Chardonnay ^ Herbal notes follow along
with this wine's zesty citrus-fruit flavors-it
brings to mind ripe oranges, pomelo and the
tense acidity of grapefruit. There's also a little sunny baked-citrus character against the
coolness. For grilled fish. -J.G. (115 cases) §

NO RT H C OA ST
CARNEROS
521256

93 | Grgich Hills

$65

2018 Carneros Napa Valley Hyde Vineyard
Chardonnay ^ There's intensity of fruit in this
wine, a concentration of flavor that makes it
feel generous, even as it is savory and dry.
Reductive as a young wine, this needs two
or three years in the cellar to show its best,
though the pedigree of the fruit is already
apparent. -J.G. (1,400 cases) §

$60

2017 Carneros Napa Valley Miljenko's
Selection Chardonnay ^ Ivo Jeramaz joined
his uncle, Mike Grgich, in 1986, moving from
Croatia to Napa Valley, where he has helped
build the organic farming practice across the

521248

92 | Rombauer

$70

2018 Carneros Proprietor Selection Chardonnay ^ A barrel selection from Rombauer's
top vineyard sources in Carneros, this wine
has succulent fruit that lends it a firm, spherical shape in the mouth, then ends with a beesting buzz of acidity. It's open and lasting,
with the flavor of tarte tatin. Built for rich
foods, like blanquette de veau. -J.G. (1,000
cases) §
517744

92 | Vivo

$70

90 | Poseidon Vineyard

$28

88 | Beaulieu Vineyard

$25

2018 Carneros Napa Valley Chardonnay
(Best Buy) ^ The team at Obsidian Wine Company also owns Kádár Hungary, a cooperage
that makes barrels for Poseidon from Hungarian oak. And that oak plays a significant
role in this wine's flavors, bringing a woodsy
mushroom tone, like the scent of chicken of
the woods, to the lush-textured fruit. The
wine feels focused, its saturation targeted
at grilled salmon steaks. -J.G. (4,850 cases) §
521229
2018 Carneros Chardonnay (Best Buy) ^
Simple and oak-driven, this creamy chardonnay has a lasting spice, hinting at cumin
and Red Hots; for spicy chicken tacos. -J.G.
(1,925 cases) §

2016 Carneros Napa Valley Chardonnay ^
This is the first release of Vivo, a chardonWINE & SPIRITS

OCTOBER 2020

https://www.mounteden.com/wines/ https://www.patzhall.com/ptz/wine-shop/all-wine/5637155089.c https://www.bonannowine.com/index.php/bon-anno-chardonnay/ https://www.obsidianwineco.com/Our-Wine https://www.rombauer.com/shop/?view=product&slug=2018-Proprietor-Chardonnay

Wine & Spirits - October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - October 2020