2015 Bevan Cellars Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (7/17/2019)
Rich, ripe tropical fruit with spicy oak overlay - this is not in my wheelhouse, but there are days when it just hits the spot. This is one of those days.
Posted from CellarTracker
Agree on some days…usually a Ramey Chard fills that hole for me. I am sure Russell + Ritchie = winner.
Glad you enjoyed, David. My only sample of this was his 2012 a couple months ago. I had high hopes of Russell + Ritchie, but…
"Wanted to give my guests both sides of the Chardonnay equation. I will try some of this again today (dinner party was Saturday) but I have to confess I was pretty nonplussed with this wine. It wasn’t hot or alcoholic to me, but it seemed to be rather abrupt and more, seemed to be missing the Ritchie citrus signature I’ve had with other producers from there. I’d almost say it’s in an awkward stage, but we’re 7 years out and that shouldn’t be the case.
I did taste it some days later and still found this profile, but it could have been my palate or frame of mind at the time. My good friend Heather, whose palate I greatly respect, loved this, tasted like a 1er Meursault to her.
I do love a lot of wines from Ritchie and once had hopes of doing a vintage horizontal…until I found out that there are at least 15 producers!
Cheers,
Mike
I actually don’t much care for wines from Ritchie, regardless of producer. But last night was one of those nights that just needed something big and rich.
I much prefer Hyde, and as Kris mentioned above, Ramey is more my go-to.
Ceritas made a Ritchie Chardonnay in 2009 that was very good. The only vintage of this I think?