Drinking fantastic right now. Beautiful gold color in the glass with not a bit of cloudiness. Really vibrant when it first hits the mouth exploding with acid on the mid-palate. Beautiful finish.
I did save about 1/3 of the bottle for day 2 and not nearly as good as day 1. The acid has faded significantly. i would therefore say drink up!! Enjoy! No use in waiting further.
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A revelation. Nuts, almond skins, salt, stone, gunpowder. Fantastic integration. A wine for pleasure and a wine to contemplate. The only downside is that it's basically impossible to find in Europe.
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I agree with the other recent notes that this is showing very well right now. The nose was wide open with spiced apples and flowers. The fruit character on the palate has evolved away from the primary concentrated tropical character of young Alpine (e.g., pineapple) to a more relaxed expression, with pear and peach predominant, livened by harmoniously integrated but still snappy acidity. The finish grips the middle palate impressively as its flavors echo the aromas.
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PnP. Medium light greenish-gold. Nose of orchard fruits, a hint of coconut/oak with a touch of herbs. Good intensity and density of fruit on the palate with excellent acidity and a long finish. The fruit is really in the background which makes this seem more old world and in my experience is often characteristic of St. Cruz mountain Chards. This might develop more complexity with age but not sure. Lovely wine.
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Sampled from a pristinely cellared bottle that was popped and poured, this medium golden Chardonnay is immediately aromatically expressive of clementines, pit fruits, wet stones, jasmine, honey and chervil. Medium-bodied, crisply acidic, judiciously oaked and without noticeable alcohol (13.3%), it delivers flavors in line with the aromas and stays solid on the mid-palate. Long and energetic on the back end, this is an impressive New World Chardonnay that could easily be confused with something from Puligny-Montrachet. Comparably cellared bottles should show well throughout the remainder of this decade. Drink now-2030.
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From magnum- this seemed not at all like an 11 year old Cali chardonnay. Has it aged at all?! Crisp, pure, some tart acidity, with minerally lemon coming through somewhat creamy. No sense of oak that I could tell, this did well on its own, with appetizers, and even with dinner of scallops and swordfish. A subtle wine on day one - wish I’d had some leftover for day two.
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Double blind - the nose has a bit of coconut and new world-y oak that led most everyone to say California, but the palate has apples, minerals, excellent acidity, dense but not overripe, spoke more to Burgundy or perhaps a clean/non-oxidative Jura like Pelican. The reveal was a fun one!
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PnP. Medium light greenish gold. Intriguing nose of salt air, sage, and citrus. Quite light on the palate but with some roundness of the fruit to balance the high acidity. Not sure this will get better. Nice but not better than that.
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70th birthday wine with a private chef and my family. This had some minerals. A semi-golden color. The wine had a fruit nose. I was able to taste butterscotch. This was my last bottle.
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I'm most of the way through this terrific stony, chalky, citrus, concrete Chardonnay and just now noticing my prior note from election night 2016. Well, I don't know if this is a 'redemption' level wine, having picked it out of the cellar on a whim, but the release of the 1/6 report this week, and the defeat of election conspiracists this past November have provided some solace about the future of free government in our nation. Upon first whiff, the wine was almost simple and over the hill, but it found its footing quickly and evolved for hours thereafter. Crazy good and in its prime.
Beautiful Chard at 9+ years, and expect it to age well for another 10 years. It seems to have the bones for this. As others have commented, a slightly sunnier, more rounded version of a very good Burgundy. But don't mistake that comment as anything but positive regardless of where this wine was grown - this is very impressive Chardonnay. Suites me perfectly as I am generally not a fan or regular drinker of more typical California Chard.
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Light gold Pear aromas with perhaps the slightest hint of oak At ten years this has really come alive. Seemingly old world sensibility with fabulous fruit. Really worth a look 93+
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I popped the cork and let sit for an hour or so then gently decanted while cool. This was a sunnier version of a white burgundy, precision acidity and length, but the palate and nose were so giving I kept going back for more. I would say this is in its early window, such a lovely wine.
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This took about twenty minutes of air to come together. After that it was excellent sporting a light floral nose. On the palate the wine is pure, medium bodied, showing white peach, apple, minerals. There is excellent acidity and energy here. The wine is fully mature and I would think this can last another 2-3 years.
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Rhys Wine Dinner (RPM Steak - Chicago IL): At a great place now, slightly floral wit ripe apple and baked apple on nose and palate, with nut butter in the near background. Very good concentration, ending with bright and energetic textures. If served blind, I could have easily been convinced this was a ripe vintage Meursault 1er Cru.
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This is off to a promising start, lime and lightly floral nose with just a touch of vanilla, and then decent line and length with dialled down tropical fruit notes giving a slight sense of richness against a mineral and slightly smoky background. Wouldn’t mistake it for burgundy but a very decent pretty restrained Cali style. After an hour or so this starts to show a curiously pettilant character and to feel less well integrated. Left overnight and it’s pulled itself together again, lost the temporary spritz feel, and starts to feel more complete. Feels as if it needs another few years to fully integrate. ***(*)
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Served blind next to Jason’s 2007 Ente Meursault village. This had some reduction, though not excessively so. Some ripe fruit, which came through more on the finish where I thought others might reach the California conclusion (though no one did). I’ve always found the finish on these wines just a touch tropical for me, especially as they warm up and open up, but they’re excellent California Chardonnays.
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Medium gold. Complex aromas of quince, preserved lemon, hazelnut, white flowers, Shitake mushrooms, a hint of vanilla. Penetrating medium to full-bodied fruit on the palate with a cleansing acidity, very welcoming, very long finish. Beautifully balanced on the nose with great energy on the palate. Interesting contrast to the 2012 Horseshoe from last night.
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A very good wine with all of the elements in place - nose, mouth, length. Ripe white fruit, rich scents and length. That said, I found a note of lemony, slightly tannic tartness on the back end a bit distracting.
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Flowers, mushrooms, shellfish, lime, butter. Just a hint of reduction remains. The fruit is subdued at first, but opens up to gorgeous starfruit with air. Nice long finish.
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This wine has a lovely balanced nose of toasty pear, citrus, and vanilla, with a touch of salinity. The texture borders on creamy, but with a discreet spine of acidity that also maintains a sense of balance. The fruit, oak, and minerals on the palate are in near complete harmony. A terrific bottle that will undoubtedly last for a while longer.
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A replacement bottle from Rhys for a corked 2009 I had a couple years ago...kudos for that, and kudos for sending me a perfectly sound bottle! ;-) The 12 is brilliantly creamy, full of lemon citrus cut, nuanced reduction, crushed chalky rocks. The fruit is pure and perfectly ripe...little tropical...wonderful full mouthfeel. Love the salted caramel salinity and creme...white flower florals...chalky crushed minerality. Some exotic honey and spice...tangerine oil...persistent and totally enjoyable! Love this!
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Intense lemon, curd, yellow apple, pear, lichee, salty minerality, great balance and length. Still fairly young and only starting to pull in some butterscotch and secondary flavors but will evolve for another 5-10 years.
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Took a little time to open. Great aromas of apple, pear, lemon, mineral, and oak. Loaded with balanced flavors of apple, pear, lemon, minerals, and a light touch of oak. smooth texture and finish. Good acidity lifts the wine. Shows nothing to let you know its 8 years old. Should hold for years, my last bottle.
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Four months after the prior, and just as lovely, again over three nights. This remains one of the top Rhys Chardonnays in our memory. Good for you who have more!
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As good of a CA Chard as I can remember. This shows dense, concentrated citrus with an opulent texture and fine minerals. Lots of dry extract. Still quite young and absolutely will improve. Not sure I've had a better Rhys.
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I found this to be a brilliant young tasting Chardonnay. It frankly reminds me more of better Chassagne Montrachet rather than California. Lustrous color, inviting nose and sleek mouthfeel with the changing mix of integrated oak, mineral and fruit one finds in great wines. Outstanding.
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13.3% abv. Medium straw, expressive aromas. On the palate, apple, pear, cinnamon, and a citrus note on the back palate. Absolutely superb balance, depth, length with poise and personality to spare. A beautiful, confident Chardonnay in the prime of life, strutting her stuff!
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Bright, vibrant, and showing drive. Savory orchard fruit. Rather deep. Somewhat muted on opening contrasted with how it blossomed on days two, three, and especially those last lovely sips on the fourth. Wow. Very glad to have one more.
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Rhys Alpine Virtual Tasting (Planet Earth): My fav of the vertical. Good orchard fruit without being overdone and very good density. Lots of nuanced supporting notes of almond and bright textures. Not a powerhouse, but so charming.
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Drank during Rhys/Berserker Zoom event, along side the two Alpine Pinot bottlings.
This is drinking SO well right now. Every sip revealed a new flavor or sensation. Upon opening, there was a slight spritziness on the tongue that dissipated quickly. Started out light, saline, "sea shell" as Jeff Brinkman mentioned on the call. Over time and as it warmed up, more tropical elements emerged but it was always in balance and finished with minerals. Sampled some the next day and it was still kicking.
Acid was a bit high on this bottling though it worked well with the chardonnay expression.
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Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Continues to drink beautifully!
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From Coravin - nose is pronounced oak upon opening with sign of buttery extract. The palate has a searing acidity, riper apples, apple tart and some creme brulee. Acidity and taste lasts a good 45 seconds. A big rich, but in balance Chard from Rhys.
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This was missing the “spritzy-ness” of my last bottle 3.5 years ago. With that said, this just didn’t seem to be the great Chardonnay I had hoped for. A little flat on a pop and pour, modest nose, big acidity. Considerable chalkiness on the finish. There was a lot going on, but disjointed. Not a lot of wood, which is good, but also lacking in a certain cleanliness I seek with this style.
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waited 3 years since last bottle for the oak to better integrate. Much more to my liking. Nose was rich and complex. Lemon oil and subtle oak notes playing well together. Palate was rich but not as complex as I would hope for this price range. An oily lemon sensation that wasn't unpleasant at all but it was a single note wine. For the price I expected more. Not a great QPR.
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Stunningly good, though I don't have any notes (party, lots of talking, etc.). I just remember this was very well balanced, and not a hair out of place.
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This is SO good right now. Crystalline. Starting to show the mineral character of this site. Citrus. Beautiful balance of fruit to acid. Lively. No noticable oaking on this bottle. An absolute hit at our dinner with Turbot with morels.
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Still has nice acid and mineral character, but this has lost the fruit intensity and concentration. But there's still quite a bit of oaky sesame seed/vanilla, which combined with the tartness is an odd combo. I still like the minerality, but this is headed in the wrong direction from when I last tasted this four years ago.
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Lost Friday afternoon gathering – Chave, Krug, Churchill, Trimbach, Mugnier and etc. (Black Salt, Washington DC): Medium expressive nose displaying ripe yellow fruit, pineapple, apple, burnt sugar, spicy spices, and steely mineral. Very good concentration, ripe yellow fruit driven palate impression, ripe yet slightly lean, good acidity and mineral and a medium to long ripe yellow fruit driven finish. My guess is a Domestic Chardonnay, perhaps Linden hardscrabble.
The nose is clean with medium plus intensity developing aromas of lemon, pineapple, Golden apple, peach, honeysuckle, vanilla and toast.
On the palate, the wine is dry with medium plus acidity, medium plus body, medium ABV and a long finish. Medium plus intensity flavors of lemon, green apple, pineapple toast and peach.
The quality level is outstanding. The wine can be drunk now but has potential for aging.
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Beautifully rich, some umami saline and nice rich minerality on the finish, excellent acidity and fairly primary, but delicious. Not particularly tropical as this wine can sometimes be, maybe a few years of bottle age has tamed this. Quite Meursault-like.
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As delicious as the previous bottle. Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Drinking beautifully!
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Like my other bottles of this wine, this one started fizzy. It has been over a year since we had the last one, and I was hoping the bubbles would fade. They did not. Must have been a bottling issue for this wine that year. However, like the other bottles, after an hour in the fridge this fizziness dissipated.
On the day of opening this didn't work well for me. It was kind of backwards, with alcohol leading the way. Days 2 and 3 however, the wine came together beautifully, with the usual citrus, crushed rock and tropical fruit. It became very nice, it just didn't start that way.
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Rhys Alpine is one of a short list of my favorite California Chardonnays. It’s tensile and almost austere for California. After a while it relaxes and a bit of peach apricot fruit sprinkled with minerals emerges. Nicely mouth watering and not too shrill. With more complexity it could be stellar.
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On the nose, a little more oak than I would like, but also great fruit (white peach?). In the mouth, the oak is absorbed and the balance is great. The yellow/white fruit shows through, but the finish is all acid and mineral. Really great with the opportunity to get better. If you have several, try one now.
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Crazy good right now and potential to get even better. High acidity, pineapple with hint of guava, lemon and mineral notes. Medium+ body, extremely balanced and low in oak. This is the type of Chards that can benefit from a 30-50 minutes decant IMO!
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Best Rhys I’ve had in ages. Even if the writers say it’s still too early is drinking amazingly right now. Incredible burgundy style with sharp minerals that round out to apricot and honeysuckle on the back end. Fabulous stuff
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Opened at Anvil prior to ESO show. This made me sit up and pay attention as this was a holy cow wine for me, especially as it warmed in the glass. Lemon oil and honey with a long finish. Beautiful.
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Courtesy of tlv. Loads of lemony citrus with a great toasted oak undertone. Mineral and stone on the finish. Good underlying acidity; well-balanced; long finish. 94+ pts.
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13.3% alcohol. I'll pat myself on the back for the note of significant upside two years ago. That's being realized. Medium yellow color. Glorious nose of apple, minerals, and light spice. In the mouth, concentrated and vibrant, with bursting, tart apple fruit that flows into an interesting mix of acidity and slight creaminess. Incredibly long, delicious finish. This is just flat-out great Chardonnay. A
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Rhys @ My Place--Part 3 (My House In The South OC): Listed ABV of 13.3%. This was the final wine of the night that I tried, and I had given my palate about 30 mins to relax before I poured this and wrote my note. This to me is straddling the older legacy Rhys Chards, where there is some oak expression on the wine, yet there is a sea breeze quality here too, that is quite akin to the 2015 Bearwallow Chard I had enjoyed earlier in the event (and which I will add showed virtually no oak signature to me). This 2012 has some vanilla bean to it, along with lemon oil, lime skin and yet there is that sea breeze signature that I dig. Enjoyed this, but far preferred the 2015 Bear Chard, which to me was the classiest white wine of the day, and one of the best from Rhys I can recall in the many years I have been drinking their white wines.
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nose with honey/strong florals, citrus. palate crisp, slight oak/buttery note but definitely not in a dominant way. lemony, slight matchstick. overall very nice if not terribly distinctive to me. 90 pts
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Very good concentration and depth. Riper and tropical flavors with good cut and tension. Gained richness and more depth with time. If this retains its freshness, it should age beautifully.
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Followed over two nights. On the big side, but carries it well. Should age nicely. Have had some mixed results with Rhys Chardonnays over the last couple of years, but this 2012 Alpine continues to be a really good one.
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The Rhys Chards remain a bit of an enigma for me. Several recent bottles from 2009-2010 have been advanced and tired. This bottle, however, was electric and delicious. Further, it held the electric nature over three nights. Go figure. Aromatics were very fresh and complete with ripe orchard fruits and minerals. Palate had richness, depth and tons of cut. Riper, for sure, but quite balanced.
Vibrant yellow in color. Lemon and citrus flavors initially masked by charred oak, which eventually subsided to allow the fruit to show through. Good acidity in both iterations keeps it racy. The wine was much improved in later pours when the oak integrated rather than overwhelming the wine; the score is based on the later and better (to my taste) pours.
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Opened and followed over a couple of hours. A rich wine, but balanced by good energy and acidity. Several recent Rhys Chardonnays have seemed advanced or tired, but this bottle showed well and it was quite nice.
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Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Drinking beautifully!
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Wow! Popped and poured. Crushed stone, lemon and floral notes on the nose. Exceptional mouthfeel with good acidity and balance. Lemon, citrus, wet stone and more on the palate. An amazing wine!
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Beautiful showing for this wine. Pop and pour, served at about 52F. Light gold in color. The nose has vanilla, slight pineapple, lanolin and grapefruit. Not powerful but intense. On the palate, great texture. Slightly oily, medium to full bodied, no sharp edges but not loose either. Flavors of pineapple, vanilla and grapefruit. Depth. Long finish. Still young but 2012 is such an open vintage. Lots of oohs and ahs as people tasted this.
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really nice complexity and balance here. acid driven, but with enough roundness to keep it fresh and lively without being astringent. Green apple, ginger, smoke, crushed stone, pineapple, salty. Lots of verve here.
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This showed really well tonight. Great balance of acid and fruit with a real finishing zip. None of the coconut overtones that I sometimes get with Rhys.
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Started fizzy upon pulling the cork. Thirty minute decant fixed that problem. Drank a couple of glasses and put the rest back into the fridge. Wine lost nothing for day two.
Nose of light tropical fruit including a some pineapple and melon, but also minerals and savory notes as well -- maybe filberts or cashews. Interesting, complex nose, with salinity mixing with sweetness.
On the palate the fruit and acid are in total balance. This is not fruit forward. In fact nothing leaps to the front, rather, the flavors dance together presenting a unified front of stone fruit, minerality, acid and savory characteristics.
Excellent for me, but not exactly my wife's preferred profile, as she prefers a sweeter, fruitier approach.
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Exquisite Chardonnay. Excellent freshness and lean throughout but still with good, complex fruit, and judicious oak. Special CA Chard here, with tons of mineral impressions and a long life ahead of it.
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First tried this chard about 3 years ago. Back then, it displayed a mix of rich tropical fruit (pineapple and caramelized banana) and citrus. This one has since shed the baby fat and now exhibited prominent citrus-citrus oil notes and acid. This could age quite well. Looking forward to seeing where this goes.
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Very Chablis like. Steely. Precise. Tart. Fairly long finish with some cheek-puckering sour notes. A layer of sweet yellow fruit runs throughout the palate. Very impressive for a new world chard.
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A tremendous wine ruined by looking at turnout in rural FL counties early in the night and being overcome with dread. Edgy, minerally, orchard fruits and dread. Yes it was supposed to be celebratory. Saving the next bottle for when Pantsuits Nation gets its redemption.
I am very sensitive to new oak flavors in white wine and tend to not like them. The new oak was very prominent to me on the initial pop and pour. To me this wine needed much more time for those flavors to integrate better. I see much potential but much further down the road. Wait 5-8 years for the next bottle.
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Pop and pour and served with food (Thai crab fried rice, in case you were wondering). Tatsed with food and on its own. Folowed for about 4 hours. Golden yellow color. Nose of crisp green apple and a saline element. Wonderful flavors of pear, green apple, with a hint of hibiscus and vanilla on the finish. Good lemon lime citrus note that frames the wine. Opens up with time into a more expressive wine with the apple and pear flavors becoming a bit more foward. Delicious.
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Nice rich aromatics with a toasty edge. Ripe and good depth with deep apples and citrus notes. Quite enjoyable. Served blind vast majority thought it was a young white burgundy.
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Very light pale gold color. Wild nose with citrus, almost grapefruit notes with very subtle hints of oak. Palate comes across similarly with lots of bracing acidity. Still tight and I think would benefit from a couple of more years in the bottle.
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Drunk out of pink plastic cups at the lake - not ideal but just fine.....lots of citrus fruit and oak on the nose. Tons of extract - lemon peel and grapefruit. Should be delicious for many years. Piercing - not for everyone but I like it a lot. (91+)
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Should have read the notes on the spritzy-ness... Will decant next time, and it did get much better after about 30 minutes. Having said that, it troubles me that so much care and mechanics are needed for this wine to show its best. Most other Rhys chards I've had are clean and pure from the get-go, not sure why this one isn't, and I find all these huge scores a bit surprising...
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Spritzy upon opening--got better over the evening and even the last glass the next night as the spritz faded and the minerality and citrus flavors came out. Medium yellow. Tart citrus nose. Tasted of lemons and maybe apple, with just a sense of oak--but muted; great acidity.
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very clean, lemon, nice purity. tasted next to a 12 Jadot Montrachet not at all a fair comparison, but i wanted to see how these would size up. I can see the similarities, yet the Montrachet had much more power and minerality.
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13.3% alcohol. Medium yellow color. Gorgeous, refined nose of green apple, lemon, light oak, and minerals. In the mouth, precise and linear, with a tart edge to the fruit, a citrus undertone on the palate, which marries nicely with the bright (yet not rough-edged) acidity, and a long finish. Significant upside here still. A
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Decant this for at least one hour to blow off S02 and remove the spritz. Avoid a sip up front. We decanted to very wide body decanter and aggressively swirled. Quite a bit of tartrates. Cloudy. If you are pouring from bottle without decant then probably two hours uncorked first. But the wine drinks well after the hour plus off our large decanter. Beautiful acid cut, slight citrus, gentle fruit, wood nowhere to be found. Excellent.
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Lively and spritely on the tongue and under the palate. Deft use of oak and M-L provide a touch of vanilla and butter, but it does not dominate. Good fruit flavor of tart stone fruit—peach, apricot--with, maybe a hint of melon. Very refreshing. Excellent wine for sipping or with a meal.
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Chardonnay Dinner at PDH (PDH): Also a little spritz at first that blows off. Less ripe than the 10 Horseshoe, with lemon and apple/pear. It gets more tart and mineral as it breathes up, and the concentration and density here is very impressive without being at all flabby, there's just more material here than in any of the other wines, and that material has been well put together. This is excellent. My WOTN. I think I slightly preferred the 12 Horseshoe I had last month, but it's close, both are excellent.
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-- popped and poured -- -- tasted non-blind over a few hours --
NOSE: expressive right out of the gate, with lots of tropical fruit aromas, as well as hints of grass, mineral, and oak; initially reductive; a bit richer smelling than the '12 Horseshoe Chard.
BODY: golden yellow color of medium depth --- almost a neon yellow; medium-light bodied; there's almost a perceptible tactile sensation of spritz, but none is readily apparent.
TASTE: incredibly high, zippy, electric acidity; tons of mineral woven throughout a ball of ripe Chardonnay fruit; 13.3% alc. not noticeable; tropical; has a tangy (salinic) edge to it; seriously serious juice --- this is a marvelous wine, if not a bit reserved right now. Richer and just a bit more large-scaled than it's also-fantastic stablemate from the Horseshoe Vineyard.
50, 5, 12, 18, 9 = 94+
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a revelation in the potential of Santa Cruz Chardonnay. Attractive in a uniquely natural way... Perfumed in the way fine perfume accentuates... Never to hide the flaws. Full bodied yet clearly feminine. Lush yet focused. I could go on.... The aroma is a fine mesh of vanilla, rose petals and orange rind with a hint of pine.... The palate is a generous blend of white and yellow fruit with a firm backbone of acids and minerals. Superbly balanced.... Full of life ahead... Except for my finished bottle.....
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Cool nose - mint, florals, some oak, lemon. Showing some oak on the palate as well - green, some lemon, very young - a nice salty saline aspect. Finish is very lemon, oak, saline. My first Rhys Chard - nice, maybe the oak will integrate. Clearly lots of material, but not sure if its my style. Nose - 5/6, Palate - 4.5+?/6, Finish - 4.5+?/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15+?/20.
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Very young, with a strong hit of reduction on opening that gradually dissipated, showing a beautiful nose of citrus, sea spray, and chalk. Powerful, mineral-laden mouthfeel yet still showing a silky finesse on the finish. The best Rhys chardonnay I've had yet, with plenty of years and room for continued improvement ahead of it.
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Wish I could find my notes. This is an outstanding wine that had everyone buzzing. The nose was killer. Fragrant nose. Dinner with Flyertalkers in NYC. One of the best chards that I've tasted. I have one more bottle left. Drink now and/or hold. Oh my!
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Tasted again in an offline with FTers along with several other bubbly champs (Yes, we allowed few still wines in :-) ) . This one is build to drink and enjoy, or hold and enjoy even more. Masterpiece Chard. (consistent with my previous notes and consistent grade, 94. Not adding again in order to avoid 'skewing' the grade distributions as it is too close to my last taste)
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Lots of oaky vanilla hits on the nose. Initial palate sensation supports the vanilla thing along with melon flavor, but then serious acid tartness saves this one for me. Interestingly enough, this one seems to hit me in stages. At the front of the palate, I’m thinking “California butter bomb,” but towards the back of the palate, I’m loving the refreshing, clean aspect. A very unusual wine. If the other bottle in my inventory is ignored a few years, the result will be interesting.
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Baby Jesus (Bouchard), Yquem, Madeira, Rhys, RM (John V.'s): Light gold in color. The nose is creamy with minerals and lemons. This is young and was better going back at the end of the evening. There is a strong streak of acidity. Nice precision. Most guessed it as CA although no one was completely sure about that. Its best days are ahead.
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Took one for the team and opened the Rhys 2012 Chard Alphine Vineyard. Yummi! Citrus on the nose and palate, also peach on palate, flower full nose smell, peppery on the tongue... we planned on having it over two nights but ended up finishing it last night (over few good hours). I am happy to see a chardonnay that is wonderful and will become even better in few years.
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Frosty yellow. Nose of lemon curd with some subtle but complex overtone that I find hard to describe: of butter, oak, pastry. Electric palate with deep sweet fruit, long lemon finish. Exciting and satisfying. 55+12+17+9.
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A Casual Monday Night in Toronto (Fine Wine Reserve, Toronto, ON): (bottle was opened 24 prior) Quite the contrast to the Ceritas poured next to it. It pours several shades darker and is much more rich and must have more oak and oxygen influence. Powerful nose is of cashew, lemon custard, vanilla, butterscotch, mostly stone fruit with the slightest tropical edge, maple syrup, ripe peach and buttered popcorn. The palate enters with just a touch of vanillin sweetness, with good high acid and a long buttered popcorn finish. A really classically styled wine done in a rich leaning style.
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Rhys Vineyards Tasting -- Barrel and Bottle (Rhys Vineyards): I didn’t pick up any sulfur here, as I did in the first two wines. Mix of citrus and tropical fruits, palate is focused and bright, with an intense, minerally finish. Terrific wine.
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4/11/2024 - Jbird73 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking fantastic right now. Beautiful gold color in the glass with not a bit of cloudiness. Really vibrant when it first hits the mouth exploding with acid on the mid-palate. Beautiful finish.
I did save about 1/3 of the bottle for day 2 and not nearly as good as day 1. The acid has faded significantly. i would therefore say drink up!! Enjoy! No use in waiting further.
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1/29/2024 - Adrian Chmielarz Likes this wine: 95 Points
A revelation. Nuts, almond skins, salt, stone, gunpowder. Fantastic integration. A wine for pleasure and a wine to contemplate. The only downside is that it's basically impossible to find in Europe.
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12/24/2023 - jlm wrote:
I agree with the other recent notes that this is showing very well right now. The nose was wide open with spiced apples and flowers. The fruit character on the palate has evolved away from the primary concentrated tropical character of young Alpine (e.g., pineapple) to a more relaxed expression, with pear and peach predominant, livened by harmoniously integrated but still snappy acidity. The finish grips the middle palate impressively as its flavors echo the aromas.
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9/4/2023 - Bakerbd Likes this wine: 93 Points
Matchstick, chamomile, baked lemon, orchard fruit
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9/3/2023 - rosenst1 wrote: 93 Points
PnP. Medium light greenish-gold. Nose of orchard fruits, a hint of coconut/oak with a touch of herbs. Good intensity and density of fruit on the palate with excellent acidity and a long finish. The fruit is really in the background which makes this seem more old world and in my experience is often characteristic of St. Cruz mountain Chards. This might develop more complexity with age but not sure. Lovely wine.
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7/6/2023 - La Cave d'Argent Likes this wine: 96 Points
Sampled from a pristinely cellared bottle that was popped and poured, this medium golden Chardonnay is immediately aromatically expressive of clementines, pit fruits, wet stones, jasmine, honey and chervil. Medium-bodied, crisply acidic, judiciously oaked and without noticeable alcohol (13.3%), it delivers flavors in line with the aromas and stays solid on the mid-palate. Long and energetic on the back end, this is an impressive New World Chardonnay that could easily be confused with something from Puligny-Montrachet. Comparably cellared bottles should show well throughout the remainder of this decade. Drink now-2030.
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6/30/2023 - Beezc Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very enjoyable. Drink up.
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5/19/2023 - kabert Likes this wine: 92 Points
From magnum- this seemed not at all like an 11 year old Cali chardonnay. Has it aged at all?! Crisp, pure, some tart acidity, with minerally lemon coming through somewhat creamy. No sense of oak that I could tell, this did well on its own, with appetizers, and even with dinner of scallops and swordfish. A subtle wine on day one - wish I’d had some leftover for day two.
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4/21/2023 - Tubulus wrote:
Double blind - the nose has a bit of coconut and new world-y oak that led most everyone to say California, but the palate has apples, minerals, excellent acidity, dense but not overripe, spoke more to Burgundy or perhaps a clean/non-oxidative Jura like Pelican. The reveal was a fun one!
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4/15/2023 - rosenst1 wrote: 91 Points
PnP. Medium light greenish gold. Intriguing nose of salt air, sage, and citrus. Quite light on the palate but with some roundness of the fruit to balance the high acidity. Not sure this will get better. Nice but not better than that.
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3/26/2023 - dhammer53 wrote: 92 Points
70th birthday wine with a private chef and my family. This had some minerals. A semi-golden color. The wine had a fruit nose. I was able to taste butterscotch. This was my last bottle.
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3/10/2023 - norsktorsk wrote: 94 Points
very nice
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12/24/2022 - silton Likes this wine: 95 Points
I'm most of the way through this terrific stony, chalky, citrus, concrete Chardonnay and just now noticing my prior note from election night 2016. Well, I don't know if this is a 'redemption' level wine, having picked it out of the cellar on a whim, but the release of the 1/6 report this week, and the defeat of election conspiracists this past November have provided some solace about the future of free government in our nation. Upon first whiff, the wine was almost simple and over the hill, but it found its footing quickly and evolved for hours thereafter. Crazy good and in its prime.
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11/16/2022 - jbaron wrote: 93 Points
Hey! It didn’t change over the last 18 months.
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4/10/2022 - Thepour wrote: 91 Points
Réduction on the nose. Still quite youthful. Very well done, but feels more worked, less mineral than Horseshoe 2012, which I preferred.
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1/24/2022 - simonsonmeister Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful Chard at 9+ years, and expect it to age well for another 10 years. It seems to have the bones for this. As others have commented, a slightly sunnier, more rounded version of a very good Burgundy. But don't mistake that comment as anything but positive regardless of where this wine was grown - this is very impressive Chardonnay. Suites me perfectly as I am generally not a fan or regular drinker of more typical California Chard.
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1/6/2022 - cos65 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Light gold
Pear aromas with perhaps the slightest hint of oak
At ten years this has really come alive. Seemingly old world sensibility with fabulous fruit. Really worth a look 93+
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12/25/2021 - kingkanu wrote:
I popped the cork and let sit for an hour or so then gently decanted while cool. This was a sunnier version of a white burgundy, precision acidity and length, but the palate and nose were so giving I kept going back for more. I would say this is in its early window, such a lovely wine.
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12/21/2021 - mclanew Likes this wine: 94 Points
This took about twenty minutes of air to come together. After that it was excellent sporting a light floral nose. On the palate the wine is pure, medium bodied, showing white peach, apple, minerals. There is excellent acidity and energy here. The wine is fully mature and I would think this can last another 2-3 years.
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12/21/2021 - mclanew wrote: flawed
Over the hill
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11/23/2021 - Mr T wrote:
Wine aged brilliantly and stool crisp with lovely white fruits and apple
Really good
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9/21/2021 - Burgundy Al wrote: 93 Points
Rhys Wine Dinner (RPM Steak - Chicago IL): At a great place now, slightly floral wit ripe apple and baked apple on nose and palate, with nut butter in the near background. Very good concentration, ending with bright and energetic textures. If served blind, I could have easily been convinced this was a ripe vintage Meursault 1er Cru.
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9/3/2021 - SimonG wrote: 91 Points
This is off to a promising start, lime and lightly floral nose with just a touch of vanilla, and then decent line and length with dialled down tropical fruit notes giving a slight sense of richness against a mineral and slightly smoky background. Wouldn’t mistake it for burgundy but a very decent pretty restrained Cali style. After an hour or so this starts to show a curiously pettilant character and to feel less well integrated. Left overnight and it’s pulled itself together again, lost the temporary spritz feel, and starts to feel more complete. Feels as if it needs another few years to fully integrate. ***(*)
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7/27/2021 - Nicephoras wrote:
Served blind next to Jason’s 2007 Ente Meursault village. This had some reduction, though not excessively so. Some ripe fruit, which came through more on the finish where I thought others might reach the California conclusion (though no one did). I’ve always found the finish on these wines just a touch tropical for me, especially as they warm up and open up, but they’re excellent California Chardonnays.
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6/21/2021 - wgmccallum Likes this wine: 95 Points
Medium gold. Complex aromas of quince, preserved lemon, hazelnut, white flowers, Shitake mushrooms, a hint of vanilla. Penetrating medium to full-bodied fruit on the palate with a cleansing acidity, very welcoming, very long finish. Beautifully balanced on the nose with great energy on the palate. Interesting contrast to the 2012 Horseshoe from last night.
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5/21/2021 - jbaron wrote: 93 Points
A very good wine with all of the elements in place - nose, mouth, length. Ripe white fruit, rich scents and length. That said, I found a note of lemony, slightly tannic tartness on the back end a bit distracting.
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4/18/2021 - magyarsvensk Likes this wine:
Flowers, mushrooms, shellfish, lime, butter. Just a hint of reduction remains. The fruit is subdued at first, but opens up to gorgeous starfruit with air. Nice long finish.
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1/15/2021 - DickMull Likes this wine: 93 Points
This wine has a lovely balanced nose of toasty pear, citrus, and vanilla, with a touch of salinity. The texture borders on creamy, but with a discreet spine of acidity that also maintains a sense of balance. The fruit, oak, and minerals on the palate are in near complete harmony. A terrific bottle that will undoubtedly last for a while longer.
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10/25/2020 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine: 95 Points
A replacement bottle from Rhys for a corked 2009 I had a couple years ago...kudos for that, and kudos for sending me a perfectly sound bottle! ;-) The 12 is brilliantly creamy, full of lemon citrus cut, nuanced reduction, crushed chalky rocks. The fruit is pure and perfectly ripe...little tropical...wonderful full mouthfeel. Love the salted caramel salinity and creme...white flower florals...chalky crushed minerality. Some exotic honey and spice...tangerine oil...persistent and totally enjoyable! Love this!
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10/12/2020 - pakabear Likes this wine: 94 Points
Intense lemon, curd, yellow apple, pear, lichee, salty minerality, great balance and length. Still fairly young and only starting to pull in some butterscotch and secondary flavors but will evolve for another 5-10 years.
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10/10/2020 - gharter Likes this wine: 93 Points
Took a little time to open. Great aromas of apple, pear, lemon, mineral, and oak. Loaded with balanced flavors of apple, pear, lemon, minerals, and a light touch of oak. smooth texture and finish. Good acidity lifts the wine. Shows nothing to let you know its 8 years old. Should hold for years, my last bottle.
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10/6/2020 - Deux Chevaux wrote:
Four months after the prior, and just as lovely, again over three nights. This remains one of the top Rhys Chardonnays in our memory. Good for you who have more!
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10/6/2020 - Lanny21 wrote:
This is a complete stunner. Not much to add from the prior notes. This the best domestic white wine I’ve drank this year, easy.
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9/21/2020 - rc@ughey wrote: 93 Points
As good of a CA Chard as I can remember. This shows dense, concentrated citrus with an opulent texture and fine minerals. Lots of dry extract. Still quite young and absolutely will improve. Not sure I've had a better Rhys.
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7/4/2020 - theRealPepe Likes this wine: 95 Points
I found this to be a brilliant young tasting Chardonnay. It frankly reminds me more of better Chassagne Montrachet rather than California. Lustrous color, inviting nose and sleek mouthfeel with the changing mix of integrated oak, mineral and fruit one finds in great wines. Outstanding.
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6/21/2020 - Beezc Likes this wine: 93 Points
This took a little time to open up. Very well balanced. I still think the best is yet to come here. Even better in a year or two. 93+
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6/21/2020 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 97 Points
13.3% abv. Medium straw, expressive aromas. On the palate, apple, pear, cinnamon, and a citrus note on the back palate. Absolutely superb balance, depth, length with poise and personality to spare. A beautiful, confident Chardonnay in the prime of life, strutting her stuff!
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6/9/2020 - Deux Chevaux wrote:
Bright, vibrant, and showing drive. Savory orchard fruit. Rather deep. Somewhat muted on opening contrasted with how it blossomed on days two, three, and especially those last lovely sips on the fourth. Wow. Very glad to have one more.
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5/27/2020 - Burgundy Al wrote: 93 Points
Rhys Alpine Virtual Tasting (Planet Earth): My fav of the vertical. Good orchard fruit without being overdone and very good density. Lots of nuanced supporting notes of almond and bright textures. Not a powerhouse, but so charming.
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5/26/2020 - thelostverse wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with prior bottles. Lemon oil and honey with a lengthy finish.
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4/16/2020 - jrkennedy37 wrote:
Drank during Rhys/Berserker Zoom event, along side the two Alpine Pinot bottlings.
This is drinking SO well right now. Every sip revealed a new flavor or sensation. Upon opening, there was a slight spritziness on the tongue that dissipated quickly. Started out light, saline, "sea shell" as Jeff Brinkman mentioned on the call. Over time and as it warmed up, more tropical elements emerged but it was always in balance and finished with minerals. Sampled some the next day and it was still kicking.
Acid was a bit high on this bottling though it worked well with the chardonnay expression.
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3/8/2020 - lolo66 wrote:
some reduction, and some oak - but the acidity and overall balance keeps this in check. A bigger wine, with some time ahead of it.
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2/21/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Continues to drink beautifully!
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2/16/2020 - lolo66 wrote:
From Coravin - nose is pronounced oak upon opening with sign of buttery extract. The palate has a searing acidity, riper apples, apple tart and some creme brulee. Acidity and taste lasts a good 45 seconds. A big rich, but in balance Chard from Rhys.
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12/9/2019 - blaine wrote:
This was missing the “spritzy-ness” of my last bottle 3.5 years ago. With that said, this just didn’t seem to be the great Chardonnay I had hoped for. A little flat on a pop and pour, modest nose, big acidity. Considerable chalkiness on the finish. There was a lot going on, but disjointed. Not a lot of wood, which is good, but also lacking in a certain cleanliness I seek with this style.
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11/29/2019 - cubswinws Likes this wine: 92 Points
From magnum. Nice well balanced chardonnay with crisp finish and touch of oak.
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10/18/2019 - vulgar little monkey wrote: 90 Points
Good CA chardonnay that didn't really leave a huge impression. We weren't studying it, but it didn't jump out at me the way the Clisson did.
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9/24/2019 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
waited 3 years since last bottle for the oak to better integrate.
Much more to my liking.
Nose was rich and complex. Lemon oil and subtle oak notes playing well together.
Palate was rich but not as complex as I would hope for this price range. An oily lemon sensation that wasn't unpleasant at all but it was a single note wine.
For the price I expected more. Not a great QPR.
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8/23/2019 - EricDilda Likes this wine: 94 Points
Old world style with nod to Chablis
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7/7/2019 - xwine wrote:
Stunningly good, though I don't have any notes (party, lots of talking, etc.). I just remember this was very well balanced, and not a hair out of place.
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7/7/2019 - Brian Love wrote:
Seemed off. Had the 15 Anderson Valley a few days later that was far better. Not sure what’s going on with this one.
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6/22/2019 - DCornutt wrote:
This is SO good right now. Crystalline. Starting to show the mineral character of this site. Citrus. Beautiful balance of fruit to acid. Lively. No noticable oaking on this bottle. An absolute hit at our dinner with Turbot with morels.
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4/20/2019 - coremill wrote: 88 Points
Still has nice acid and mineral character, but this has lost the fruit intensity and concentration. But there's still quite a bit of oaky sesame seed/vanilla, which combined with the tartness is an odd combo. I still like the minerality, but this is headed in the wrong direction from when I last tasted this four years ago.
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3/29/2019 - dcwino wrote: 92 Points
Lost Friday afternoon gathering – Chave, Krug, Churchill, Trimbach, Mugnier and etc. (Black Salt, Washington DC): Medium expressive nose displaying ripe yellow fruit, pineapple, apple, burnt sugar, spicy spices, and steely mineral. Very good concentration, ripe yellow fruit driven palate impression, ripe yet slightly lean, good acidity and mineral and a medium to long ripe yellow fruit driven finish. My guess is a Domestic Chardonnay, perhaps Linden hardscrabble.
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3/8/2019 - floydtp wrote: 93 Points
Clear, medium intensity lemon color.
The nose is clean with medium plus intensity developing aromas of lemon, pineapple, Golden apple, peach, honeysuckle, vanilla and toast.
On the palate, the wine is dry with medium plus acidity, medium plus body, medium ABV and a long finish. Medium plus intensity flavors of lemon, green apple, pineapple toast and peach.
The quality level is outstanding. The wine can be drunk now but has potential for aging.
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2/5/2019 - alanr wrote: 92 Points
Beautifully rich, some umami saline and nice rich minerality on the finish, excellent acidity and fairly primary, but delicious. Not particularly tropical as this wine can sometimes be, maybe a few years of bottle age has tamed this. Quite Meursault-like.
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1/23/2019 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
As delicious as the previous bottle. Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Drinking beautifully!
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12/25/2018 - WineGold wrote:
Like my other bottles of this wine, this one started fizzy. It has been over a year since we had the last one, and I was hoping the bubbles would fade. They did not. Must have been a bottling issue for this wine that year. However, like the other bottles, after an hour in the fridge this fizziness dissipated.
On the day of opening this didn't work well for me. It was kind of backwards, with alcohol leading the way. Days 2 and 3 however, the wine came together beautifully, with the usual citrus, crushed rock and tropical fruit. It became very nice, it just didn't start that way.
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12/15/2018 - sdr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Rhys Alpine is one of a short list of my favorite California Chardonnays. It’s tensile and almost austere for California. After a while it relaxes and a bit of peach apricot fruit sprinkled with minerals emerges. Nicely mouth watering and not too shrill. With more complexity it could be stellar.
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12/1/2018 - soyhead wrote:
mouth - somewhat fat and rich, even a little tropical
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11/2/2018 - L Wine Views Likes this wine: 93 Points
Excellent wine, it opened up after a half hour. I recommend decanting. It had a lot of citrus notes with a high acidity.
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11/1/2018 - Stumpy wrote: 90 Points
Good, clean and a wee bit sour
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9/9/2018 - Stumpy wrote: 88 Points
The cork on this was a bit soiled so suspect it was not in prime shape. A bit primary and oaky-definitely not my usual experience with Rhys Chards.
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9/5/2018 - Burgundy Al wrote: 92 Points
Chardonnay Shootout: Burgundy vs New World, Double Blind (Booth One - Chicago IL): Double blind in Chardonnay New World vs Old World shootout. Yellow and green apple with Meyer lemon, ginger and saline. Starts out strong, finishes even stronger. Upside from here. I incorrectly thought this was from Burgundy.
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8/14/2018 - gbauer wrote:
On the nose, a little more oak than I would like, but also great fruit (white peach?). In the mouth, the oak is absorbed and the balance is great. The yellow/white fruit shows through, but the finish is all acid and mineral. Really great with the opportunity to get better. If you have several, try one now.
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6/1/2018 - gteran76 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Crazy good right now and potential to get even better. High acidity, pineapple with hint of guava, lemon and mineral notes. Medium+ body, extremely balanced and low in oak. This is the type of Chards that can benefit from a 30-50 minutes decant IMO!
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5/13/2018 - mreinhard74@gmail.com Likes this wine: 95 Points
Best Rhys I’ve had in ages. Even if the writers say it’s still too early is drinking amazingly right now. Incredible burgundy style with sharp minerals that round out to apricot and honeysuckle on the back end. Fabulous stuff
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4/20/2018 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 96 Points
Beautiful!
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4/8/2018 - Acohen Likes this wine: 94 Points
Crisp with lots of lemon, asian pear and a great finish
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2/10/2018 - thelostverse wrote: 95 Points
Opened at Anvil prior to ESO show. This made me sit up and pay attention as this was a holy cow wine for me, especially as it warmed in the glass. Lemon oil and honey with a long finish. Beautiful.
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2/10/2018 - AllRed wrote: 94 Points
Courtesy of tlv. Loads of lemony citrus with a great toasted oak undertone. Mineral and stone on the finish. Good underlying acidity; well-balanced; long finish. 94+ pts.
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2/2/2018 - gutt22 Likes this wine:
13.3% alcohol. I'll pat myself on the back for the note of significant upside two years ago. That's being realized. Medium yellow color. Glorious nose of apple, minerals, and light spice. In the mouth, concentrated and vibrant, with bursting, tart apple fruit that flows into an interesting mix of acidity and slight creaminess. Incredibly long, delicious finish. This is just flat-out great Chardonnay. A
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1/22/2018 - B Paul wrote:
Another good bottle. Drinking well and should continue to improve for another couple of years.
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10/1/2017 - Frank Murray III wrote:
Rhys @ My Place--Part 3 (My House In The South OC): Listed ABV of 13.3%. This was the final wine of the night that I tried, and I had given my palate about 30 mins to relax before I poured this and wrote my note. This to me is straddling the older legacy Rhys Chards, where there is some oak expression on the wine, yet there is a sea breeze quality here too, that is quite akin to the 2015 Bearwallow Chard I had enjoyed earlier in the event (and which I will add showed virtually no oak signature to me). This 2012 has some vanilla bean to it, along with lemon oil, lime skin and yet there is that sea breeze signature that I dig. Enjoyed this, but far preferred the 2015 Bear Chard, which to me was the classiest white wine of the day, and one of the best from Rhys I can recall in the many years I have been drinking their white wines.
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9/30/2017 - fred o. Likes this wine:
nose with honey/strong florals, citrus. palate crisp, slight oak/buttery note but definitely not in a dominant way. lemony, slight matchstick. overall very nice if not terribly distinctive to me. 90 pts
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9/19/2017 - Nanda wrote: 92 Points
Very good concentration and depth. Riper and tropical flavors with good cut and tension. Gained richness and more depth with time. If this retains its freshness, it should age beautifully.
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9/12/2017 - B Paul wrote:
Followed over two nights. On the big side, but carries it well. Should age nicely. Have had some mixed results with Rhys Chardonnays over the last couple of years, but this 2012 Alpine continues to be a really good one.
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8/8/2017 - Nanda wrote: 92 Points
The Rhys Chards remain a bit of an enigma for me. Several recent bottles from 2009-2010 have been advanced and tired. This bottle, however, was electric and delicious. Further, it held the electric nature over three nights. Go figure. Aromatics were very fresh and complete with ripe orchard fruits and minerals. Palate had richness, depth and tons of cut. Riper, for sure, but quite balanced.
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7/8/2017 - ChrisR Likes this wine: 89 Points
Vibrant yellow in color. Lemon and citrus flavors initially masked by charred oak, which eventually subsided to allow the fruit to show through. Good acidity in both iterations keeps it racy. The wine was much improved in later pours when the oak integrated rather than overwhelming the wine; the score is based on the later and better (to my taste) pours.
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6/19/2017 - B Paul wrote:
Opened and followed over a couple of hours. A rich wine, but balanced by good energy and acidity. Several recent Rhys Chardonnays have seemed advanced or tired, but this bottle showed well and it was quite nice.
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5/26/2017 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Lemon peel and citrus notes on the fragrant nose and silky smooth palate with refreshing acidity and mineral notes on the long finish. Drinking beautifully!
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5/13/2017 - BHull Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wow!
Popped and poured.
Crushed stone, lemon and floral notes on the nose.
Exceptional mouthfeel with good acidity and balance.
Lemon, citrus, wet stone and more on the palate.
An amazing wine!
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5/13/2017 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 95 Points
Beautiful showing for this wine. Pop and pour, served at about 52F. Light gold in color. The nose has vanilla, slight pineapple, lanolin and grapefruit. Not powerful but intense. On the palate, great texture. Slightly oily, medium to full bodied, no sharp edges but not loose either. Flavors of pineapple, vanilla and grapefruit. Depth. Long finish. Still young but 2012 is such an open vintage. Lots of oohs and ahs as people tasted this.
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4/17/2017 - ews3 wrote: 93 Points
really nice complexity and balance here. acid driven, but with enough roundness to keep it fresh and lively without being astringent. Green apple, ginger, smoke, crushed stone, pineapple, salty. Lots of verve here.
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3/4/2017 - joe d Likes this wine:
This showed really well tonight. Great balance of acid and fruit with a real finishing zip. None of the coconut overtones that I sometimes get with Rhys.
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2/26/2017 - WineGold Likes this wine: 92 Points
Started fizzy upon pulling the cork. Thirty minute decant fixed that problem. Drank a couple of glasses and put the rest back into the fridge. Wine lost nothing for day two.
Nose of light tropical fruit including a some pineapple and melon, but also minerals and savory notes as well -- maybe filberts or cashews. Interesting, complex nose, with salinity mixing with sweetness.
On the palate the fruit and acid are in total balance. This is not fruit forward. In fact nothing leaps to the front, rather, the flavors dance together presenting a unified front of stone fruit, minerality, acid and savory characteristics.
Excellent for me, but not exactly my wife's preferred profile, as she prefers a sweeter, fruitier approach.
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2/13/2017 - B Paul wrote:
Seems a little bigger and richer than some prior vintages of the Alpine, but very well done. Drink or hold.
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1/15/2017 - Robert Pavlovich Likes this wine:
Exquisite Chardonnay. Excellent freshness and lean throughout but still with good, complex fruit, and judicious oak. Special CA Chard here, with tons of mineral impressions and a long life ahead of it.
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1/14/2017 - grafstrb wrote:
-- popped and poured --
-- tasted non-blind --
{Same as previous bottle}. Very impressive wine.
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1/4/2017 - wineaux2 Likes this wine: 91 Points
First tried this chard about 3 years ago. Back then, it displayed a mix of rich tropical fruit (pineapple and caramelized banana) and citrus. This one has since shed the baby fat and now exhibited prominent citrus-citrus oil notes and acid. This could age quite well. Looking forward to seeing where this goes.
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12/19/2016 - ledwards wrote: 93 Points
Very Chablis like. Steely. Precise. Tart. Fairly long finish with some cheek-puckering sour notes. A layer of sweet yellow fruit runs throughout the palate. Very impressive for a new world chard.
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11/8/2016 - silton Likes this wine:
A tremendous wine ruined by looking at turnout in rural FL counties early in the night and being overcome with dread. Edgy, minerally, orchard fruits and dread. Yes it was supposed to be celebratory. Saving the next bottle for when Pantsuits Nation gets its redemption.
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10/23/2016 - hiker_guy wrote:
I am very sensitive to new oak flavors in white wine and tend to not like them.
The new oak was very prominent to me on the initial pop and pour. To me this wine needed much more time for those flavors to integrate better. I see much potential but much further down the road. Wait 5-8 years for the next bottle.
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9/9/2016 - t_moderne wrote: 92 Points
Pop and pour and served with food (Thai crab fried rice, in case you were wondering). Tatsed with food and on its own. Folowed for about 4 hours.
Golden yellow color. Nose of crisp green apple and a saline element.
Wonderful flavors of pear, green apple, with a hint of hibiscus and vanilla on the finish. Good lemon lime citrus note that frames the wine.
Opens up with time into a more expressive wine with the apple and pear flavors becoming a bit more foward. Delicious.
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8/20/2016 - KenK Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice rich aromatics with a toasty edge. Ripe and good depth with deep apples and citrus notes. Quite enjoyable. Served blind vast majority thought it was a young white burgundy.
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8/13/2016 - Acohen Likes this wine: 93 Points
Crisp with lemon, pear and stone fruit that went great with oysters and lobster
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7/9/2016 - rcg62 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very light pale gold color. Wild nose with citrus, almost grapefruit notes with very subtle hints of oak. Palate comes across similarly with lots of bracing acidity. Still tight and I think would benefit from a couple of more years in the bottle.
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7/5/2016 - dbkitc wrote: 91 Points
Drunk out of pink plastic cups at the lake - not ideal but just fine.....lots of citrus fruit and oak on the nose. Tons of extract - lemon peel and grapefruit. Should be delicious for many years. Piercing - not for everyone but I like it a lot. (91+)
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5/21/2016 - blaine wrote:
Should have read the notes on the spritzy-ness... Will decant next time, and it did get much better after about 30 minutes. Having said that, it troubles me that so much care and mechanics are needed for this wine to show its best. Most other Rhys chards I've had are clean and pure from the get-go, not sure why this one isn't, and I find all these huge scores a bit surprising...
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5/1/2016 - bobflan Likes this wine: 93 Points
Spritzy upon opening--got better over the evening and even the last glass the next night as the spritz faded and the minerality and citrus flavors came out. Medium yellow. Tart citrus nose. Tasted of lemons and maybe apple, with just a sense of oak--but muted; great acidity.
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2/26/2016 - soyhead wrote:
very clean, lemon, nice purity. tasted next to a 12 Jadot Montrachet not at all a fair comparison, but i wanted to see how these would size up. I can see the similarities, yet the Montrachet had much more power and minerality.
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2/26/2016 - gutt22 Likes this wine:
13.3% alcohol. Medium yellow color. Gorgeous, refined nose of green apple, lemon, light oak, and minerals. In the mouth, precise and linear, with a tart edge to the fruit, a citrus undertone on the palate, which marries nicely with the bright (yet not rough-edged) acidity, and a long finish. Significant upside here still. A
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11/21/2015 - Steve Brickley Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decant this for at least one hour to blow off S02 and remove the spritz. Avoid a sip up front. We decanted to very wide body decanter and aggressively swirled. Quite a bit of tartrates. Cloudy. If you are pouring from bottle without decant then probably two hours uncorked first. But the wine drinks well after the hour plus off our large decanter. Beautiful acid cut, slight citrus, gentle fruit, wood nowhere to be found. Excellent.
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10/23/2015 - EMark Likes this wine:
Lively and spritely on the tongue and under the palate. Deft use of oak and M-L provide a touch of vanilla and butter, but it does not dominate. Good fruit flavor of tart stone fruit—peach, apricot--with, maybe a hint of melon. Very refreshing. Excellent wine for sipping or with a meal.
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9/29/2015 - coremill wrote: 91 Points
Chardonnay Dinner at PDH (PDH): Also a little spritz at first that blows off. Less ripe than the 10 Horseshoe, with lemon and apple/pear. It gets more tart and mineral as it breathes up, and the concentration and density here is very impressive without being at all flabby, there's just more material here than in any of the other wines, and that material has been well put together. This is excellent. My WOTN. I think I slightly preferred the 12 Horseshoe I had last month, but it's close, both are excellent.
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9/19/2015 - Uglypinga Likes this wine:
This was a lot tighter than the 11 horsey. Almost chalky with nice fruit but it failet like a coiled snake that never unwound.
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8/24/2015 - grafstrb wrote: 94 Points
-- popped and poured --
-- tasted non-blind over a few hours --
NOSE: expressive right out of the gate, with lots of tropical fruit aromas, as well as hints of grass, mineral, and oak; initially reductive; a bit richer smelling than the '12 Horseshoe Chard.
BODY: golden yellow color of medium depth --- almost a neon yellow; medium-light bodied; there's almost a perceptible tactile sensation of spritz, but none is readily apparent.
TASTE: incredibly high, zippy, electric acidity; tons of mineral woven throughout a ball of ripe Chardonnay fruit; 13.3% alc. not noticeable; tropical; has a tangy (salinic) edge to it; seriously serious juice --- this is a marvelous wine, if not a bit reserved right now. Richer and just a bit more large-scaled than it's also-fantastic stablemate from the Horseshoe Vineyard.
50, 5, 12, 18, 9 = 94+
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8/19/2015 - Chris NYC Likes this wine: 95 Points
a revelation in the potential of Santa Cruz Chardonnay. Attractive in a uniquely natural way... Perfumed in the way fine perfume accentuates... Never to hide the flaws. Full bodied yet clearly feminine. Lush yet focused. I could go on....
The aroma is a fine mesh of vanilla, rose petals and orange rind with a hint of pine.... The palate is a generous blend of white and yellow fruit with a firm backbone of acids and minerals. Superbly balanced.... Full of life ahead... Except for my finished bottle.....
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8/15/2015 - Seth Rosenberg wrote: 90 Points
Cool nose - mint, florals, some oak, lemon. Showing some oak on the palate as well - green, some lemon, very young - a nice salty saline aspect. Finish is very lemon, oak, saline. My first Rhys Chard - nice, maybe the oak will integrate. Clearly lots of material, but not sure if its my style. Nose - 5/6, Palate - 4.5+?/6, Finish - 4.5+?/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15+?/20.
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8/13/2015 - Billigan Likes this wine:
Very young, with a strong hit of reduction on opening that gradually dissipated, showing a beautiful nose of citrus, sea spray, and chalk. Powerful, mineral-laden mouthfeel yet still showing a silky finesse on the finish. The best Rhys chardonnay I've had yet, with plenty of years and room for continued improvement ahead of it.
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8/13/2015 - Bakerbd Likes this wine: 94 Points
Lemon, lime, stone fruit, jasmine, tropical fruits, peach, mineral. Med body and med + acidity, med-long finish. A lovely and balanced chardonnay
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8/12/2015 - coremill wrote: flawed
Corked.
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2/21/2015 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 94 Points
Death by Lobster (Four Seasons Hotel, Atlanta): Terrific, with intense minerality and bracing acidity, the Chardonnay of the night for me.
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1/31/2015 - dhammer53 wrote: 94 Points
Wish I could find my notes. This is an outstanding wine that had everyone buzzing. The nose was killer. Fragrant nose. Dinner with Flyertalkers in NYC. One of the best chards that I've tasted. I have one more bottle left. Drink now and/or hold. Oh my!
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1/24/2015 - odds Likes this wine:
Tasted again in an offline with FTers along with several other bubbly champs (Yes, we allowed few still wines in :-) ) . This one is build to drink and enjoy, or hold and enjoy even more. Masterpiece Chard. (consistent with my previous notes and consistent grade, 94. Not adding again in order to avoid 'skewing' the grade distributions as it is too close to my last taste)
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1/8/2015 - EMark Likes this wine:
Lots of oaky vanilla hits on the nose. Initial palate sensation supports the vanilla thing along with melon flavor, but then serious acid tartness saves this one for me. Interestingly enough, this one seems to hit me in stages. At the front of the palate, I’m thinking “California butter bomb,” but towards the back of the palate, I’m loving the refreshing, clean aspect. A very unusual wine. If the other bottle in my inventory is ignored a few years, the result will be interesting.
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12/18/2014 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 94 Points
Baby Jesus (Bouchard), Yquem, Madeira, Rhys, RM (John V.'s): Light gold in color. The nose is creamy with minerals and lemons. This is young and was better going back at the end of the evening. There is a strong streak of acidity. Nice precision. Most guessed it as CA although no one was completely sure about that. Its best days are ahead.
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12/12/2014 - odds Likes this wine: 94 Points
Took one for the team and opened the Rhys 2012 Chard Alphine Vineyard. Yummi! Citrus on the nose and palate, also peach on palate, flower full nose smell, peppery on the tongue... we planned on having it over two nights but ended up finishing it last night (over few good hours). I am happy to see a chardonnay that is wonderful and will become even better in few years.
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11/22/2014 - wgmccallum Likes this wine: 93 Points
Frosty yellow. Nose of lemon curd with some subtle but complex overtone that I find hard to describe: of butter, oak, pastry. Electric palate with deep sweet fruit, long lemon finish. Exciting and satisfying. 55+12+17+9.
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11/17/2014 - Wine Canuck wrote: 93 Points
A Casual Monday Night in Toronto (Fine Wine Reserve, Toronto, ON): (bottle was opened 24 prior) Quite the contrast to the Ceritas poured next to it. It pours several shades darker and is much more rich and must have more oak and oxygen influence. Powerful nose is of cashew, lemon custard, vanilla, butterscotch, mostly stone fruit with the slightest tropical edge, maple syrup, ripe peach and buttered popcorn. The palate enters with just a touch of vanillin sweetness, with good high acid and a long buttered popcorn finish. A really classically styled wine done in a rich leaning style.
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2/1/2014 - xwine wrote:
Rhys Vineyards Tasting -- Barrel and Bottle (Rhys Vineyards): I didn’t pick up any sulfur here, as I did in the first two wines. Mix of citrus and tropical fruits, palate is focused and bright, with an intense, minerally finish. Terrific wine.
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