Search results for: 'plot white'

94 Points! The 2023 Chardonnay Estate is exquisite. Floral and lifted, with striking precision, the Melville Chardonnay makes such a strong case for why Chardonnay is so ideally suited here. Lemon confit, jasmine and light tropical inflections are some of the notes that grace this sublimely elegant white. Bright acids pull it all together on the finish. I would give the 2023 six months to a year in bottle, as it is pretty tightly wound at this stage. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

93 Points! Ripe lemon and citrus fruits, some minty herbs, and chalky minerality all emerge from the 2023 Chardonnay Estate Sta. Rita Hills, a clean, vibrant, focused Chardonnay that has solid acidity, beautiful overall balance and texture, and a great finish. The estate comes all from the Melville Vineyard and was raised in neutral oak, hitting 13% alcohol with a pH of 3.27. - Jeb Dunnuck

93 Points! Energetic, sleek and vibrant, with pineapple, lemon curd and pomelo notes up front. Touches of fresh ginger, crunchy sea salt and orange blossoms linger on the finish alongside details of matcha and white pepper. Drink now. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! The 2012 Brut Collection d'Auteur is deep and vinous, unwinding in the glass with notes of pear, white flowers and freshly braked bread mingled with subtle hints of citrus zest and bee pollen. Full-bodied, elegantly muscular and seamless, with a deep and concentrated core, bright acids and a pretty pinpoint mousse, it's a seamless, understated blanc de blanc derived from holdings in prime lieux-dits Les Vaucherots, Les Coullemets du Midi, Les Finciarts and Les Chétillons. - William Kelley, robertparker.com

94 Points! Young and unevolved, the 2018 Chardonnay Estate offers fresh, lively bouquet of honeyed peach and lemon oil-like notes interwoven with plenty of toasted bread, spice, and white flowers. It’s clean, medium-bodied, and elegant on the palate, and it shows the supple, elegant, approachable style of the vintage nicely. It’s going to benefit from a year in bottle and should evolve nicely for 3-5 years. This estate continues to produce a brilliant, high-class Chardonnay well worth seeking out! - Jeb Dunnuck

95 Points! Last of the Chardonnays, the 2022 Chardonnay John Sebastiano Vineyard comes from a great vineyard on the eastern side of the appellation and was brought up in 28% new French oak. Ripe melon, salted citrus, crushed stone, and white flowers all define the aromatics, and this beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a pure, focused, chiseled mouthfeel, integrated acidity, and a great finish. It’s California's answer to a great Chablis! Drink bottles over the coming 7-8 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

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94 Points! The 2023 Côtes Du Rhône La Reserve Blanc is all Clairette Rose, which is a later ripening variety compared to Clairette and a variety that brings a touch more richness and texture. Beautiful notes of honeyed melon, minty, sappy herbs, and spice all define the aromatics. These carry to a medium to full-bodied white that has a layered, balanced profile, beautiful freshness, and one heck of a finish. This is one Côtes Du Rhône Blanc that would have no problem standing in a lineup of top Châteauneuf du Pape Blanc! Drink bottles over the coming 2-4 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

92-94 Points! The 2023 Le C du Sec du Château Closiot, a 100% Sémillon wine that underwent malolactic fermentation and matured in one-quarter new barrels, reveals aromas of ripe orchard fruits, baked pear, vanilla pod, white fruits, lemon and spices. It is medium to full-bodied, with a textural and layered palate that includes a fleshy core of fruit, bright acids and a deep, concentrated mid-palate, concluding with a long, chalky and tense finish. Crafted by Jean-Marie Guffens, this promising wine offers a broad drinking window, indicating its potential for both immediate enjoyment and aging. - Yohan Castaing, robertparker.com

97–98 Points – James Suckling
“A serious Aile d'Argent with sliced green mangoes, pears and green apples. Full-bodied. Framed with phenolics and minerals. Complex and real. A touch of flint and cedar at the end. Super finish. A blend of 63% Sauvignon Blanc, 29% Sémillon, 7% Sauvignon Gris and 1% Muscadelle.”

94–96 Points – Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent
“The 2025 Aile d'Argent pops from the glass with vivacious notes of Bosc pears, white peaches, and pink grapefruit, giving way to hints of honeysuckle, orange peel, and beeswax with a touch of jasmine tea. Medium-bodied, the palate is satiny-textured and crisp with intense orchard fruit flavors and a long, fragrant finish. The blend is 63% Sauvignon Blanc, 29% Sémillon, 7% Sauvignon Gris, and 1% Muscadelle. It has a pH of 3.13 and the alcohol is 13.6%. It is due to age in French oak barrels for 9 months, 45% new. No malolactic was performed this year.”

93–95 Points – Jeb Dunnuck
“A blend of 63% Sauvignon Blanc, 29% Sémillon, 7% Sauvignon Gris, and a splash of Muscadelle, the 2025 Château Mouton Rothschild Aile D'Argent Blanc offers bright green citrus, crushed stone, minty herb, and savory aromatics, with an incredibly mineral-driven character. On the palate, it's medium-bodied, with bright, racy acidity and a clean finish. This exotic, complex, perfumed white is going to benefit from a few years in the cellar and I suspect have a long drinking window.”

94 Points, Wine Spectator's #10 Wine of the Year 2024! Oozing with character, this succulent and mouthwatering white offers a fleshy, juicy mix of perfectly ripe peach, mango and lemon bar flavors, with fresh herbal accents of lemon verbena and vetiver. Offers accents of freshly grated ginger, tangerine and crunchy sea salt on the finish. Drink now through 2036. - Wine Spectator

95 Points! The 2022 Chardonnay Russian River Valley is also a bright silver straw color and has a slightly deeper tone. Revealing notes of smoky wet stones, lemon balm, green apples, and fresh flowers, it has a bit more medium-bodied richness. with a lovely. light-on-its-feet feel in this vintage. - Jeb Dunnuck

96 Points! Disgorged without dosage, the NV Extra Brut Rosé Fac-similie (LC18) bursts with aromas of red berries, plums and spices mingled with freshly baked bread and dried white flowers. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and sapid, with delicate structure and an enveloping core of irresistibly succulent fruit, lively acids and a long, saline finish. While the Fac-similie shares the charm of its white counterpart, its gently phenolic grip seems to temper some of the exuberance of the vintage. - William Kelley, robertparker.com

96 Points! Salty and spicy, with aromas of ginger, cardamom, lemons and sea salt. The palate is medium- to full-bodied, sharp and pungent, with a precise, saline character. Rich, focused and delicious. From grapes grown in Gualtallary. Fermented and aged in French oak, of which 35% was new. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! The 2023 Chardonnay El Enemigo comes from Gualtallary, Uco Valley. Aged in 500-liter French oak barrels, it opens with green apple, chamomile, white peach, herbs and a subtle vermouth note. Dry, compact and saline, the oak broadens the palate where richness is otherwise restrained. The 2023 is a modern, refined profile for Gualtallary Chardonnay in a warm vintage. - Joaquín Hidalgo, Vinous

94 Points!  Ale Vigil is partial to a touch of flor in his top whites, as long as it occurs naturally in the winery. This left-field Gualtallary Chardonnay is savoury, spicy and slightly salty, with a brine-like top note, lovely texture, subtle 35% new wood, hints of aniseed and wild thyme and a core of beeswax and citrus zest. - Tim Atkin, MW

93 Points!  The 2023 Chardonnay derives from Adrianna Vineyard, was vinified in 500-liter barrique and incorporates some biological aging and a small portion of a five-year-old solera. Leading with a bright, citrus-driven nose bolstered by an elegant nutty richness, the palate is vibrant, textural and seamless, concluding with a succulent and nuanced finish. As with the whole El Enemigo range, this offers a fantastic value that entirely transcends the price point. - Luis Gutiérrez, robertparker.com

94+ Points! Disgorged in May 2022, the Paillard NV Extra-Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru is superbly fresh, offering up aromas of orchard fruit, lemon, spring flowers and menthol touches. Medium to full-bodied, expressive and precise with a delicate mousse, it’s seamless, vinous, chalky and harmonious with a clean and precise finish. - Yohan Castaing, robertparker.com

94 Points! Freshly squeezed lemon, green apples, oyster shell and white apricots with subtle brioche and exquisite yeastiness. A fruity entry followed by a medium to full body where you find the fine perlage carrying the intense chalky flavors to a nicely dry but approachable finish. Lovely length with spot-on balance between chalky fruit and autolysis. Disgorged in March 2022. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! A flinty, herbaceous aroma leads to nicely layered flavors of citrus, ginger and limestone in this complex, subtle and fascinating wine. Nervy acidity braces the ample herb and fruit flavors for an especially energized mouthfeel. - Wine Enthusiast

Winemaker Notes: The 2023 vintage was long and temperate, and at times, blissfully cool. The resulting wine has a great balance of richness and texture and a very well-delineated backbone of vibrant acidity. Aromatics and flavors of lemon, mandarin, Asian pear, and white peach with fresh, floral notes of cassis bud and lime. Very long and mouth-wateringly juicy.

95 Points! This offers a gorgeous kaleidoscope of fruit -- kumquat, yellow plum, starfruit and quince -- atop a bed of silky-fine mineral notes and subtly bitter tannins. Honeyed, full and rich, with a refined texture and a very long finish edged in piecrust and toast, showing acid verve and impressive structure. Drink now through 2030. 130 cases made, 50 cases imported. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! I loved the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vin De La Solitude Blanc, an exotic, floral white based on 30% Clairette, 20% each Roussanne and Grenache Blanc, and the rest Clairette Rose, Picpoul, and Bourboulenc. Ripe melon, honeyed orange, toasted bread, and minty herbs all emerge from this complex, nuanced, medium-bodied beauty, and it has good depth and richness, a great sense of freshness, and outstanding length. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! I loved the 2023 Sauvignon Blanc, a vibrant white offering ample Meyer lemon, honeyed flowers, and crushed stone-driven aromatics, as well as a crisp, clean sense of reduction. Medium-bodied, nicely concentrated, and elegant, it might be my favorite of the lineup. I love it today, yet it should have at least a decade of longevity, if not more. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! A solid sauvignon blanc with Meyer lemons, light grapefruit, peach stones and just a touch of flint on the nose and palate. Creamy texture. So caressing. Very Loire-like in a Touraine sort of way. Made from old vines planted in the 1940s and 1960s. Nine months or less in concrete tanks, used large barrels and 80-gallon stainless steel drums. Made by the fourth generation of the Mondavi family. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! There is a clear Jura twang in the white 2022 Ollos Branco that makes me wonder if the wine had any biological aging under flor (Garrido confirmed that it did!). It's the evolution of the wine he used to call Mercenario and comes from selected vineyards in different locations and soils and a myriad of varieties—Treixadura, Albariño, Godello, Loureira, Torrontés, Lado, Branco Lexítimo and Verdello Antigo—picked when they were still crunchy. It finished at 12.3% alcohol with a pH of 3.3 and 6.1 grams of acidity. It's tasty, complex, long, salty and vibrant, with effervescent freshness and a bitter and salty twist in the finish. I love it. He wants to represent an overall picture of Ribeiro, fermenting and aging in barrels and tinajas, where the wine matured for 10 months.- Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

95 Points! This offers a gorgeous kaleidoscope of fruit -- kumquat, yellow plum, starfruit and quince -- atop a bed of silky-fine mineral notes and subtly bitter tannins. Honeyed, full and rich, with a refined texture and a very long finish edged in piecrust and toast, showing acid verve and impressive structure. Drink now through 2030. 130 cases made, 50 cases imported. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! I loved the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vin De La Solitude Blanc, an exotic, floral white based on 30% Clairette, 20% each Roussanne and Grenache Blanc, and the rest Clairette Rose, Picpoul, and Bourboulenc. Ripe melon, honeyed orange, toasted bread, and minty herbs all emerge from this complex, nuanced, medium-bodied beauty, and it has good depth and richness, a great sense of freshness, and outstanding length. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! The 2020 Chardonnay Seven Springs Vineyard was picked on September 22, after the smoke from the wildfires in Willamette Valley cleared. It was fermented and matured for around 11 months in 50% new oak. It has intense aromas of peach, honey, allspice and toast, flavors that are echoed on the expansive palate. It has a creamy, gently grippy texture and a matchstick-laced finish. It's a great effort in a very challenging vintage. Drink it over the next few years. Just 73 cases were made. - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

93 Points! I tasted the grey label version of the 2020 Chardonnay Seven Springs, which opens with flinty reduction, along with savory herbs of chive, green apple, and lemon verbena. The palate is fresh with chalky texture, lemon curd, white flowers, baking spice, and a hint vanilla bean on the back end. Drink 2022-2032.- Audrey Frick, JebDunnuck.com

96 Points! Even more outstanding than the 2020, the incredibly priced 2021 Reserva is young in boisterous blue fruit, with a generous, full-bodied palate of richness and upfront power. The tannins add length and breadth to the wine, which is tasting great and could go another 10-15 years. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com

96 Points! Elegant yet perfectly structured, this is the most floral of the Murrieta Reservas I’ve tasted in recent years. With 8% Graciano and 4% Mazuelo, the nose is perfumed with pretty rose petal and delicate red berry fruit, as well as wild herbal aromas. Blueberry fruit typical of Tempranillo directs the palate, rounded out with a little fleshy Garnacha, and framed by subtle American oak. It offers immediate appeal but will age gracefully for many years to come. - Decanter Magazine

95 Points! Their flagship wine comes from one of the finest vintages in recent times. The 2021 Marqués de Murrieta was previously called the Reserva and still qualifies as such, but it's not included in the name now. It was produced with 86% Tempranillo, 8% Graciano, 4% Mazuelo and 2% Garnacha Tinta from their 300 hectares of vines in their Ygay estate on limestone and clay soils with alluvial influence. The grapes were picked between the 27th of September and the 15th of October, and each plot and variety was vinified separately in stainless steel, matured in American oak barrels for 26 months, then blended and kept in concrete for a few months until bottling, which was a longer élevage this year. It's very spicy, peppery, with a combination of berry fruit and some incipient tertiary aromas, hints of forest floor and truffle. It's very Rioja, with clout, elegance and freshness and the elegant tannins that are the signature of 2021. It comes in at 14.3% alcohol with a pH of 3.6, denoting ripeness and balance. It's delicious, fresh and available. Bravo! - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

94 Points! Smoky berries, plums, oranges and grilled tarragon, herbs and white pepper. Fine-grained tannins on the medium- to full-bodied palate before a lengthy finish. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! A vibrant rosé Champagne, with firm, well-honed acidity deftly wrapped in a smooth texture and rich notes of marzipan, dried white cherry, blood orange peel and salted Marcona almond. Reveals hints of ground ginger, lemon thyme and wet chalk, with a long, lasting finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Drink now through 2030. - Wine Spectator