Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Saturday, December 4, 2021 - 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€.

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