A fellow Berserker and I are putting together a Chardonnay tasting with the goal of experiencing a wide range of terroir. We are thinking of 6 bottles, a mixture of Old and New World, but would like some help on picking specific producers/bottles. This is what we’ve settled on so far:
1- Sonoma: Littorai (either Charles Heintz or Sonoma Coast)
2- Meursault: Ampeau
3- New Zealand: Kumea River
4- Pulginy: Leflaive donated by a very generous participant
That leaves two or three more slots. We were playing around with Chablis, Oregon, Ontario, another Cali region, Australia. But what do you think? Are there any specific producers and/or bottlings that you would recommend? What compliments what we’ve already picked? Thanks so much!!!
In Oregon, Goodfellow and Winderlea comes to mind.
In California, Liquid Farm (Santa Rita Hills) White Hill chardonnay is probably my favorite domestic white. See if you can find one that is 2-3 years old as they can be quite acidic upon release.
2015 Evesham Wood Chardonnay Mahonia Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley (6/28/2021)
Brother in Town Lot’s of Wines!!!; 6/26/2021-7/4/2021: Day 1: One if not the best Domestic Chardonnay I have ever tasted. This is high end Burgundy without the price point. Flint, spice, shells, orange peel, saline, tart apples and dust. Aged in neutral French Oak. Medium to long finish and amazing acidity. This is a must have in a blind White Burgundy tasting. 95 points
Day 2: Has not lost any complexity and maybe even more vibrant than day 1. For under $40.00 this is an amazing steal. 95+
Recommendation: Buy this immediately. I can’t believe they still have 20 cases of this wine left but my brother and I just took one of their hands. (95 points)
Best Domestic Chardonnay I have tasted all year and under $40.00 from the winery.
Jim’s wines at Arterberry Maresh are great examples of exciting things that are happening with Oregon Chardonnay. 2018 or 2017 Maresh bottlings are particularly good. Alternatively, Tyson Crowley has some wonderful OR chards. His Four Winds bottlings are always great. Both are a low alcohol, neutral oak, high acidity style. Others to try in Oregon would be Cameron Abbey Ridge or reserve bottlings and Ayoub. Morgan long and Walter Scott are also sexy choices these days.
+1 for Goodfellow! If you go with a Goodfellow Chardonnay (Richard’s or Durant), open ahead of time. It really needs some “air” to shine. Please post TN’s. Sounds like a great tasting.
I definitely think OR and the SCM should be in the mix. Quite a few good choices for both, but ease to actual acquire may narrow it down. Goodfellow and Mount Eden are good places to start for those two respective areas. Looking south, perhaps Arcadian Bien Nacido.
Linden Vineyards - either the Hardscrabble or the Avenius. Probably the best wines made from one of the best wineries in Virginia. Avenius is more “Chablis like”. Both age well.
I’d go with Chablis - just about any William Fevre premier cru from 2014 to 2017 should show well. I’m also partial to Domaine Servin Mont de Tonnerre - 2017 and 2018 are really nice.
Oregon is currently producing the chardonnays that deliver “shock and awe” to me…would suggest Walter Scott or Morgon Long. Would also agree with Santa Cruz Mountains for sourcing something from Rhys, Mount Eden, or most likely Ceritas.