I know there are over 1 million different wines bottled for sale every year. Sometimes I think there are a million wineries in California alone. Never heard of this one and I’m a serious Santa Cruz Mountain geek.
Light gold color. Moderately intense aromas are fresh for 5 years, there’s Rome apple, minerals, a faint but nice touch of cactus flower. The palate is lean and very fresh, the minerals are dominant, the flowers muted. There is none of the lime and conifer that I associate with Santa Cruz Mountain Chardonnay, but this is a good, vigorous glass with enough intensity to stand up to a flavorful stuffed clam.
The flavor profiles are different of course, but to me Santa Cruz Mountain Chardonnays are a close New World analogue to Chablis. This is equivalent to a Village Chablis from a good producer. Rated 88.5, still young, could improve a point or two over the next five years. I paid $15 in the discount bin of an retailer I’d never visited before. I’m a happy camper, although this the downside of buying singletons.
Dan Kravitz