Didn’t see a TN when I did the search so I’ll drop a new post up in the event someone wants to tag on.
2016 Rhys Chardonnay Bearwallow Vineyard- USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (3/7/2020)
About a year and a half since I really sat down and tasted through a bottle of this wine. Opened the current bottle about 4 hours ago, took to a party then brought a small amount home for this note. The aromatic of oak infuses the wine, with a mix of vanilla bean and some toast, as well as flavoring aspects of the palate. I don’t mind the oak here because the fruit is able to play alongside it, with a distinct lemony quality to the wine, along with green apple, dried pineapple, ginger and flint. The weight here is squarely medium and with the listed all of 12.5%, and pairing this with an arugula salad, it drinks great. Nothing heavy here, a more lithe version of Bear Chard and one that seems to be cruising along just fine. FWIW, some tasters noted either a ripeness or flamboyant quality to the wine…I don’t find that.
With “light/crisp” Chardonnays, it’s an occasional occurrence for me to notice some, albeit not usually from CA (usually South Africa, I believe); I actually enjoy a little dash. It is really weird that I made note of that, so I assume the aromas must have been a mixture where I wouldn’t have been surprised to find some pyrazine. Of note: I perceived some on the Nose of a recent 2016 Alpine Chard…
