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SKU 936723
$51.30/bottle
Out of stock
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The 2021 Chardonnay Rinconada Vineyard outperforms the Sanford & Benedict Chardonnay this vintage. It has singular aromas of grilled peaches, panna cotta, toast and wafts of matchstick, its detail and layering drawing me back to the glass again and again. The light-bodied palate has a core of mineral-driven fruit that, combined with the wine’s tangy acidity, creates a shimmery impression. It has a long, latent finish and won’t reach its full potential until it’s had several years in bottle to unwind.
Of all the white wine grape varietals, surely the one that has spread the furthest and is most widely appreciated is Chardonnay. This green-skinned grape is now grown all over the Old and New Worlds, from New Zealand to the Americas, from England to Chile, and is one of the first varietals people think of when considering white wine grapes. Perhaps this is because of its huge popularity, which reached a peak in the 1990s, thanks to new technologies combining with traditional methods to bring the very best features out of the Chardonnay grape and allow its unique qualities to shine through. Most fine Chardonnay wines use a process known as malolactic fermentation, wherein the malic acids in the grape juice are converted to lactic acids, allowing a creamier, buttery nature to come forward in the wine. No grape varietal is better suited to this process than Chardonnay, which manages to balance these silky, creamy notes with fresh white fruit flavors beautifully.
Country
United States
Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.
Region
California
California as a wine producing region has grown in size and importance considerably over the past couple of centuries, and today is the proud producer of more than ninety percent of the United States' wines. Indeed, if California was a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of wine in the world, with a vast range of vineyards covering almost half a million acres. The secret to California's success as a wine region has a lot to do with the high quality of its soils, and the fact that it has an extensive Pacific coastline which perfectly tempers the blazing sunshine it experiences all year round. The winds coming off the ocean cool the vines, and the natural valleys and mountainsides which make up most of the state's wine regions make for ideal areas in which to cultivate a variety of high quality grapes.
Appellation
Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara is home to many of California's most sought after wines, with a powerful reputation for superbly crafted, old world style big, flavorful and complex red wines. The white wine industry in the region is growing, too, with many wineries within Santa Barbara successfully experimenting with several classic white wine grape varietals. As in much of California, Santa Barbara benefits from the blazing west coast sunshine, coupled with cooling Pacific Ocean breezes and fogs, which help to temper the grapes and slow the ripening process, thus ensuring more flavor and aroma in the resulting wines. Although Santa Barbara is a relatively young wine region, it is home to many wineries who are extremely dedicated when it comes to demonstrating just how good their terroir is, and how characterful their region's wines can be.
WA95pts
Wine Advocate
The 2021 Chardonnay Rinconada Vineyard outperforms the Sanford & Benedict Chardonnay this vintage. It has singular aromas of grilled peaches, panna cotta, toast and wafts of matchstick, its detail and layering drawing me back to the glass again and again. The light-bodied palate has a core of mineral-driven fruit that, combined with the wine's tangy acidity, creates a shimmery impression. It has a long, latent finish and won't reach its full potential until it's had several years in bottle to unwind.
JS95pts
James Suckling
Much more flinty with dried apples, pie crust and salted caramel. Medium-bodied with plenty of phenolics and a flavorful finish. Drink now.
WNS94pts
Wine & Spirits
Sashi Moorman's interpretation of La Rinconada vineyard is super smoky when first poured, leading with scents of lime pith and lemon zest. With air, a pure apple-like fruit emerges. For all the fruit expression there,s mineral intensity here, pithy and electric, which broadens the texture and provides lift and length.
Winery Notes
Rated 94 - Lying just to the west of fabled Sanford and Benedict Vineyard, the Rinconada Vineyard was the first certified organic vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills. The 2021 Rinconada chardonnay comes in at an even thirteen percent in this vintage and is again, just a touch reductive when first poured and in need of a bit of decanting time if drinking young. Once it has had a chance to stretch its wings, it shows a beautiful aromatic panoply of fresh pineapple, pear, a hint of passion fruit, discreet notes of iodine, a fine base of soil tones and just a touch of oak influence. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied, focused and complex, with lovely mid-palate depth of fruit, fine transparency and grip, bouncy acids and a long, succulent and impeccably balanced finish. This is gorgeous this year! 2023-2040. - John Gilman
WS93pts
Wine Spectator
Shows a savory thread of honeycomb, saline and a hint of flint to the mouthwatering core of lemon curd, with details of pomelo and green apple skin and abundant aromatic notes of lemon verbena and lemongrass. Picks up a hint of lanolin on the savory finish. Drink now. 128 cases made.
VM93pts
Vinous Media
The 2021 Chardonnay La Rinconada is a super-classic Sandhi Chardonnay. Brisk and energetic, the Rinconada is laced with tangerine oil, dried flowers, marzipan and spice, all framed by discreet oak. The Rinconada has a bit more mid-palate pliancy than the other Chardonnays in the range, which renders it quite accessible.
