2014 Mayacamas Vineyards Chardonnay - USA, California, Napa Valley, Mt. Veeder (4/25/2024)
Of course, last bottle in the cellar always the best! Aging wonderfully...still reminding me of a riper aged Cru Chablis...has that iodine, crushed limestone, salty sea air...the fruit is SO pure and crystalline...pitted orchard, butter sauteed green apple...still a huge cut of lemon citrus...blanched almonds...pretty white flower florals...dried honey...REALLY nice balance of richness and energy...just the slightest alc nip and wood spice just to show where you really are...should have plenty more left in the tank on this one...such a great Chardonnay! (94 points)
Well…drank a couple cases of the 1999 and 2002 at age 10+…an amazing direct purchase that @ToddFrench orchestrated…and to tell you the truth…this 2014 at age ten, seems way more fresh and youthful than those 99/02 were! Out of the two cases of those 99/02 at least half dozen were oxed. 6 for 6 of these 14’s…fresh and youthful…and doesn’t seem even close to oxing?
I’ve had the 99 chard 3x over the past 3 years and all were good though there was definite variability. One was one of the most complex white wines I’ve ever had.
A 2000 tasted in 2021 was not yet at peak.
Too bad on the bottles you had being ox-ed, I wonder if the winemaking has cleaned up a bit, but the good bottles feel like they can really go forever
