Decided to do a little tasting with some higher end Cali Chards. All were opened for an hour or so before drinking with no decant.
2009 Aubert Lauren
A bit cloudy, nice nose with some smoke, citrus. Apricot, lemon on palate- with a lot of acidity and minerality. A bit more tropical notes after an hour. This is the first 09 Lauren I have opened and needs a bit of cellar time to mellow out the acidity, which was not what I usually expect from this wine. Love the mouthfeel of this wine- and has a long finish. Try again in a couple years.
2009 Ceritas Ritchie
Golden yellow color, nose had more apple and a bit of vanilla. Apple/pear on palate- with more acidity than expected. Nice mineral component, very focused and rich. Long finish and loved it. Try again in a couple years
2009 Rhys Alpine
Lighter in color than the previous 2. Oak jumped out on the nose, with some tropical notes. Palate- Citrus and pineapple, seemed very structured- vanilla and a bit of oak. Nice mineral quality- and this one really improved with some time in the glass. A great finish to this one also.
A very interesting tasting- and shows that California is really doing some great things with Chardonnay. None of these remotely resembled a buttery oaky Chard. I would say restrained(even the Aubert), focused, with more mineral/acidity, with the fruit there but not driving the wines. I think all will benefit for more cellar time, but no reason not to enjoy right now. All of them would be in the 92-94 point range to me. I would never compare these to a White Burg or Chablis- which I also love. These are really excellent California wines!! I thought they were all very very good. And not a hint of premox!!!