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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2014 and 2016 (based on 11 user opinions) |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 89.5 pts. and median of 89 pts. in 40 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by speverest54 on 2/11/2023: Nose: clean, moderate, vinous, skins of apples, melons, and stone fruit, orange flowers, faint smoke, sheep’s cheese. Tastes like creamy strawberry with bitterness, 60+sec finish, lovely oak underlying the flavor. Acidity barely pools around base of tongue, guessing 13.5% alch and listed at 14.1. Listed ~$45 online. Pritchard Hill, St. Helena, Napa Valley. Pritchard, named after the first grape grower, has Sobrante series soil covering 340 acres and sits above the fog line. Chappellet is well regarded family founded 1968. 800-1800 ft. elevation. They made their name with a 1969 legendary CabSav (364 views) | | | Tasted by Peter Spijker on 2/3/2023 & rated 89 points: Very high in alcohol, full bodied, lemon, some apple. Not to my liking due to the alcohol. (383 views) | | | Tasted by forceberry on 12/4/2021 & rated 94 points: This bottle - also known as Signature Chenin Blanc and Molly Chappellet Chenin Blanc - is a 100% Chenin Blanc from Napa Valley, fermented in used French oak barrels, stainless steel tanks and a Nomblot concrete egg tank. 14,5% alcohol.
Pale lemon yellow color with a deeper straw-yellow core. Quite ripe, nuanced and pretty seductive nose of juicy yellow stone fruits, some evolved waxy richness, a little bit of hay, light creamy tones, a hint of woolly lanolin and a nutty touch of slivered almonds. The overall impression isn't huge, but very attractive and full of layers. The wine feels ripe, vibrant and quite concentrated on the palate with intense, subtly sweet-toned flavors of juicy Golden Delicious apple, some stony mineral tones, light oaky notes of creaminess and toasted spices, a little bit of evolved nuttiness and waxy character, a floral hint of apple blossom and a subtly bitter touch of pithy pomelo. The high acidity lends great intensity, firmness and sense of structure to the wine, while the rather high alcohol lends a little bit of warmth to the palate. The finish is bright, structured and quite persistent with intense flavors of apple jam and ripe peachy fruit, some nutty notes of wood, a little bit of creaminess, light stony mineral nuances and a hint of wizened stone fruits.
I honestly didn't have high expectations at first when I saw the wine - a Napa Chenin clocking in at 14,5% alcohol. Well, fortunately I tasted the wine with an open mind, since it turned out to be a real stunner - while quite substantial, it never felt heavy, ponderous or overdone in any way. Instead the ripeness was at just the right level, retaining enough freshness and focus to balance out the richness and sweeter fruit nuances. The wine bears a little bit of oak influence, but it feels very judicious and well-integrated with the fruit. And what's most important, the wine has high acidity which is absolutely necessary for a good Chenin Blanc, be it a light and crisp one, or big, ripe and burly. There is no way one could mistake this for a light and mineral Loire Valley Chenin, but stylistically this is quite close to the best South African Chenin Blancs - albeit perhaps showing a bit more weight and ripeness. All in all, for such a big and ripe wine, this is nothing short of excellent; despite its size this wine shows fantastic sense of balance, focus and freshness. Although a bit evolved in character, I expect this wine to continue improving for another 4-7 years, if not even longer. A complete wine in every way, good value at 34,50€. (1279 views) | | | Tasted by davewr on 3/24/2018 & rated 94 points: This is now a complete wine. Fruit, mineralogy, acidity all fully integrated and balanced. Tropical fruit, apricot, honeydew leads to a wonderful long finish. (1656 views) | | | Tasted by jkscully on 11/13/2017: This Chenin started with creamy banana, peach, and other tropical fruits. The finish had notes of white pepper, rosemary, green grass, and that quintessential touch of honey that, to me, defines Chenin Blanc. Although, not surprisingly, it didn’t have the same intensity of chalky minerality that was present in the Touraine examples from last week (no Tuffeau limestone on Pritchard Hill), it did have a nice saltiness to it on day 2 and even a touch of baked apple. I actually liked it better on day 2, which makes me wonder if could have improved with a few more years of bottle age.
People say that this is one of the best New World examples of Chenin Blanc and I can believe it. It’s a very nice wine. My only complaint is that I thought the flavors were a bit muddled and difficult to discern. This isn’t a bad thing, but it made it a little less intellectually stimulating.
The richness of this wine should be kept in mind when pairing it with food. It was an excellent match with bacon wrapped scallops and spicey fish stew, but it overpowered milld flavors of pork chops and spaghetti with garlic and oil (whereas the simple Montlouis paired perfectly with this dish). (1841 views) | | | Tasted by nzinkgraf on 1/20/2017: Dry honey aromas. Palate is full, with obscure white fruit. Pairs well with Cinnabon. (2318 views) | | | Tasted by JackCMac on 1/17/2017 & rated 92 points: Great tropical fruit. Great acid. Long finish. Excellent with crab (2226 views) | | | Tasted by KSWinegeek on 4/27/2016 & rated 89 points: Light in color. Nice minerality. (2902 views) | | | Tasted by Eric Guido on 3/24/2016 & rated 92 points: The nose was highly expressive with ripe tropical fruits up front, sweet herbs, crushed stone, banana and exotic floral tones. On the palate, it was ripe yet unbelievably fresh with notes of mango and citrus saturating the senses along with fleshy textures which seemed more like nectar than wine. The finish was long, palate-coating, yet fresh, with hints of banana and sweet lemon. To think that this is all neutral wood is amazing. This is just pure Napa Chenin Blanc. (2455 views) | | | Tasted by wineismylife on 3/19/2016 & rated 90 points: WIML90
Tasted non blind.
Straw to light yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of flowers, apricot core and a hint of cinnamon. Flavors of peach, strawberries and lemon. Medium acidity, light to medium body. Drink now. (2431 views) | | | Tasted by Jcalvin3 on 7/7/2015 & rated 89 points: Very pale straw. Soft pear and apple. Not sweet with slight minerality. Light to medium finish. (2038 views) | | | Tasted by Tjmayne on 5/3/2015 & rated 90 points: Rohz is right, but let's not let good be the enemy of the perfect. This is a lovely wine and perfectly drinkable now. (2160 views) | | | Tasted by RohzWine on 3/18/2015 & rated 88 points: Have always loved Chappellet's Chenin Blanc, however lacks the acidity and balance compared with the '11. (1501 views) | | | Tasted by CJM on 3/4/2015 & rated 84 points: Water clear, very, very pale straw. Guava, pineapple, green apple. Not sweet, low acids, no tannins. Lemon. Short, slightly acidic finish. Winery tasting (1409 views) | | | Tasted by pvewino on 1/31/2015 & rated 89 points: Very good wine. While it is still young, this wine can certainly be enjoyed now. Excellent citrus and minerality. (1528 views) | | | Tasted by mgstull on 12/11/2014 & rated 88 points: Pale straw. The impression of sweet tropical fruit and orange zest with balanced acidity, but actually quite dry. The minerality is very reminiscent of an Alsace wine. (1187 views) | | | Tasted by nzinkgraf on 9/26/2014: red apple skin aroma. palate is not too fuzzy. some frosty mineral on the palate. not too wierd or over bearing. baking apple on the palate, but not in a dull fashion. again, a very smooth drinking, full white. (1162 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, New Releases from Napa Valley: 2012 and 2013 (Dec 2014) (10/1/2014)
(Chappellet Chenin Blanc Pritchard Hill) Subscribe to see review text. |
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| Chappellet Producer websiteChenin Blanc Varietal character (Appellation America)USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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