Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Saturday, October 23, 2021 - A selection of different Chardonnay clones sourced from multiple vineyards in Sta. Rita Hills. Fermented and aged for 8 months in used, neutral (5 to 20 years old) French oak barrels. No MLF, no bâtonnage. 14% alcohol.

Pale lime-green color. Bright but also surprisingly restrained nose with understated aromas of green apples, some lemony citrus fruit notes, a little bit of leesy character, light stony mineral notes and a developed nutty hint of slivered almonds. The wine feels ripe, broad and juicy on the palate with a moderately full body and quite ripe but also slightly reticent flavors of sweet Golden Delicious apple, some white peach, light almondy tones, a little bit of leesy creaminess and a hint of chalk dust. Despite its quite full body and ripe overall character, the wine comes across enjoyably balanced, thanks to its quite high acidity. The finish is ripe, long and juicy with vibrant flavors of sweet white peach, some golden apple tones, a little bit of leesy creaminess, light stony mineral notes and a hint of slivered almonds.

A balanced, tasty and enjoyably fresh California Chardonnay where the emphasis is on the brightness of the fruit, not on the weight and massive oak influence. However, the nose here is remarkably understated and also the flavors are a bit muted, lending a somewhat linear and slightly underwhelming feel to the wine. Tasting this side-by-side with the 2010 Clone 76 Inox Chardonnay that was aged in stainless steel, this wine shows slightly more complexity, but otherwise comes across as somewhat less impressive compared to the Clone 76. It's hard to say whether the wine was in a dumb phase, starting to fade away or if we just had a slightly dud bottle. This was good, but nothing too thrilling. Priced according to its quality at 29€.

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