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Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $11.94 $12.57
12 bottles: $9.51
Barefoot Buttery Chardonnay is creamy and vibrant, bursting with pineapple aromas and layers of toasty oak that...
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $12.92 $13.87
Subtle, discreet oak spice nicely supports citrus and apple flavors. Hints of flint and mineral notes chime in on the...
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $37.94
Sangiacomo Chardonnay is a beautiful bright gold color with powerful aromatics. Passionfruit and kiwi jump from the...
12 FREE
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $13.26 $13.96
12 bottles: $10.46
The wine’s cool lemon and tangerine scents lead into warmer lees and oak flavors, ending on a slow, smoky burn.
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $52.94
12 bottles: $51.88
Tightly focused and refined for a Zinfandel, this version packs in deep flavors of black cherry, licorice and roasted...
12 FREE
WS
94
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $21.81
12 bottles: $21.37
Dynamic and generous, this Zin combines old-school briar with sleek suppleness, serving up stylish flavors of...
WS
93
VM
90
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $61.27 $68.08
12 bottles: $49.40
Belle Glos Chardonnay from Glasir Holt vineyard boasts a refreshing acidity and a rich mouthfeel with flavors of...
White
750ml
Bottle: $40.08
12 bottles: $39.28
A honeycomb sweetness with a hint of oaky caramel leads in this stylish white. It’s broad and ripe, but the apple...
12 FREE
W&S
90
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $39.67 $44.08
6 bottles: $36.00
The 2019 Benton-Lane Chardonnay is complex and elegant with bright aromas of unripe tropical green pineapple and...
White
750ml
Bottle: $18.00
12 bottles: $11.73
Well balanced with mouthwatering fruit and lively acid. Flavors of apple, pear, citrus and apricot. Creamy hints of...
White
750ml
Bottle: $25.68
12 bottles: $20.52
The Sangiacomo West Rows are in the “sweet spot” of Los Carneros, an ideal location to nurture Chardonnay. The...
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $15.38 $17.09
12 bottles: $13.18
This wine showcases a bouquet of ripe apricot, vanilla beam, and buttered toast. Creamy and mouth-coating, the palate...
Sale
White
1.5Ltr
Bottle: $28.84 $30.36
6 bottles: $19.20
The Beringer Founders’ Estate Chardonnay is the perfect combination of pear, apple and ripe tropical fruit flavors,...
White
750ml
Bottle: $15.10
12 bottles: $12.37
The Beringer Founders’ Estate Chardonnay is the perfect combination of pear, apple and ripe tropical fruit flavors,...
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $26.77 $27.59
6 bottles: $26.23
Mandarin orange, quince and apple blossom with cheese rind, almonds, baking spices and a touch of saline minerality....
JS
93
VM
92
Sale
White
1.5Ltr
Bottle: $25.81 $27.17
6 bottles: $16.68
The Basics A wonderfully approachable and refreshing wine. The Taste Full of lush fruit flavors and aromas, the...
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $12.43 $13.08
The Basics A wonderfully approachable and refreshing wine. The Taste Full of lush fruit flavors and aromas, the...
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $35.64 $39.60
12 bottles: $34.20
Golden apple, yellow plums, and a touch of banana peel followed by chamomile tea leaves, hawthorn, browned toast and...
JS
96
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $27.94 $29.68
12 bottles: $24.48
Subtle flavors of pear, apple and white melon make for a pleasant nose on this countywide cuvée. The palate is...
WE
90
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $27.69 $30.80
The 2021 Chardonnay Estate features creamy lime panna cotta, green pear and smoky flint tones on the nose at this...
WA
94
WS
91

Chardonnay Zinfandel New Zealand United States

Of all the white wine grape varietals, surely the one which has spread the furthest and is most widely appreciated is the 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.

The precise origins of what became known as the Zinfandel grape variety are uncertain, although it has clear genetic equivalents in both Puglia and Croatia. However, when it was brought to the New World in the mid 19th century, it became known as the Zinfandel, and has been consistently popular and widely grown ever since. These very dark and very round grapes have a remarkably high sugar content, resulting in relatively high levels of alcohol in the wines they are made into, with bottles often displaying as much as fifteen percent. What makes the Zinfandel such an interesting grape, though, is the fact that the flavors produced by this varietal vary considerably depending on the climate they are grown in. In cooler valley regions, the Zinfandel grapes result in wines which hold strong flavors of tart and sweet fruits; raspberry, redcurrant and sweet cherry, held in a very smooth and silky liquid. Conversely, warmer regions result in more complex and spicy notes, including anise, pepper and hedgerow berries.

As with nearby Australia, New Zealand has over the past century proven itself to be a superb location for producing high quality wines in vast amounts, with much of the cooler regions of both islands being used primarily for vine cultivation. New Zealand wineries are notable for their enthusiasm in regards to experimentation, and for utilizing modern technologies and methods to make the most of the imported grape varietals which flourish in the rich, fertile soils and oceanic climate. In recent years, it has been the New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc wines which have gained the most attention, as a result of their smoky character and ability to carry the mineral rich nature of the terroir they grow in. Changing consumer interests have brought about a considerable rise in the production of organic and sustainable wines in New Zealand, of which again, the Sauvignon Blanc varietals are leading the way in regards to excellence, flavor and overall character.

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.