Community Tasting Note

Hi.its.Don.4.Wine Likes this wine:

Thursday, March 2, 2023 - I Know How to Pick 'Em

It’s quite easy for me to pick good, and even great, wines. It all starts with reviews and scores. Today’s wine was a no-brainer in that it started with a very good 91 Point review and only went up from there to a whopping 95 Points! A 92 and a couple of 94 Point reviews were the toppings.

Not that reviews are the end-all, but they do lend a hand in my selecting wines I have yet to sample, and they did play a role in my purchase of said wine. Wait, I haven’t said the wine. Let’s clear that up. It’s the

Joseph Phelps Chardonnay, Freestone Vineyards, Sonoma Coast 2019

Blended from 100% estate-grown and sustainable Chardonnay vineyards from Phelps Freestone Vineyards (Quarter Moon and Pastorale Vineyard), it is aged for 14 months in 44% new and 56% used French oak puncheons and barrels.

That generous Sonoma fruit, alongside a vein of minerality, makes this a keeper. A slight butter note entwined with citrus, stone fruit, and a balanced yet subtle acidity brings heft to this wine to the brink of outstanding, but I must give due as well. This is another Cali chard that is transforming into a more Burgundian-styled Chardonnay, a style that I have been trending to for a while now.

Since I started on reviews and points earned, I’ll end on it as well.

The wine is scrumptious. A tad bit more minerality and a little less of the butter note, and it would be a 95 to 96 Pointer, no question. As is, it commands a solid 94 rating, which is a keeper for me and should be for those serious Chardonnay drinkers out there.

Cheers

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