Pure Chardonnay, 2006 ($10.99) - The X Winery is one of those California concepts that leave the rest of us scratching our heads. It is actually two wineries in one: X Winery and Amicus Cellars. The latter makes expensive Napa Valley wines, while the former makes value wines under several different labels from numerous sources. The back label reports that they are made by the Underground Winery. Go figure! The offerings under the Pure label are pure values. The Sauvignon Blanc is a tasty New Zealand-style wine with varietal character and good acidity. The Chardonnay is a bit dull with muted crispness, but it is better than most in this price range.

Wente Chardonnay 'Morning Fog,' Livermore, 2007 ($13.99) - The Wente Sauvignon Blanc has been a big success, so we're following it up with this very attractive Chardonnay. The historic Wente Vineyards is California's oldest family-owned and continuously operated winery. It was founded in 1883 by Charles H. Wente and today is managed by the fourth and fifth generations of the Wente family. After learning about winemaking from Charles Krug, Wente, an immigrant from Germany, recognized that the warm days, cool nights, and gravelly soils of the Livermore Valley (east-south-east of San Francisco) were ideal for growing grapes. He purchased 48 acres and planted vineyards. Today the winery grows grapes on 2700 acres. Livermore was one of California's premier grape growing areas before upstart Napa Valley surpassed it. With the resurgence of Concannon and Wente, Livermore is once again becoming an important wine producer. The Chardonnay is named for the daily summer fog that extends past the bowl of the San Francisco Bay into the Livermore Valley, where it cools the air making it ideal for growing beautifully balanced grapes. The wine is enlivened by the addition of 2% Gewürztraminer. Half was barrel fermented and aged in French oak; the remainder saw only stainless steel. Both portions aged sur lie for seven months with monthly stirring of the lees (batonnage). The result is a soft wine (0.5% residual sugar and a slightly low 0.58% acidity) with nice flavors of red apple, tangerine, and tropical fruits with hints of oak and vanilla.

High Note Chardonnay, Santa Barbara, 2005 ($14.99) - An attractive, reasonably well-balanced, rounded wine with medium fruit and just enough oak to give it some complexity. Made by Alison Crowe.  Alison has been both a custom crush provider and client winemaker with California’s Bonny Doon Vineyard and Byington Vineyard & Winery, and Bodegas Salentein in Argentina. Alison is currently the winemaker for Plata Wine Partners, LLC and provides consulting and custom winemaking services to nationally distributed wineries as well as hot startup brands.

Lion's Ridge "Unoaked" Chardonnay, 2007 ($15.99) - Although the label makes no claim regarding wood, this wine was aged only in stainless steel. Made from hand-picked Monterey County grapes, it shows the rich, natural fruit character of Chardonnay. The wine opens with aromas of freshly cut green apple, melon, and pear. Refreshing and lush tropical fruit flavors carry through to the crisp and satisfying finish. Lion's Ridge is a label made by the Clos La Chance winery. Many people associate Chardonnay with oaky flavors that come from aging the wines in oak barrels (or as is the case with most inexpensive ones, dumping oak chips into the tank), but Chardonnay can be just lovely without the oak influence. Medium-bodied with pleasing crispness, this charming wine is more food-friendly than the oaky ones. ($15.99) - Although the label makes no claim regarding wood, this wine was aged only in stainless steel. Made from hand-picked Monterey County grapes, it shows the rich, natural fruit character of Chardonnay. The wine opens with aromas of freshly cut green apple, melon, and pear. Refreshing and lush tropical fruit flavors carry through to the crisp and satisfying finish. Lion's Ridge is a label made by the Clos La Chance winery. Many people associate Chardonnay with oaky flavors that come from aging the wines in oak barrels (or as is the case with most inexpensive ones, dumping oak chips into the tank), but Chardonnay can be just lovely without the oak influence. Medium-bodied with pleasing crispness, this charming wine is more food-friendly than the oaky ones.

20-Gauge Chardonnay, 2006 ($14.99) - Gauge Wines are the NRA’s answer to us effete wine snobs. The wines are crafted by two hunters (John and Bjorn, one of whom grew up in Napa Valley) and a winemaker (Trent, whose father founded Livingston Vineyards and who learned to make wine from LV’s first winemaker, Randy Dunn). According to the label, these wines aren’t inspired by the meals you cook; they are inspired by the meals you catch. But you don’t have to be a hunter to enjoy these wines. The Chard is crisp, creamy, and inspired by foggy spring mornings, sitting in perfect stillness among the reeds. Chardonnay is prized as the perfect complement to seafood, but this one goes well with all types of fowl, whether hunted or “bagged” at the supermarket.

Geode Chardonnay, Santa Barbara, 2006 ($16.99) - What an exceptional value! With the cooling influence of ocean breezes, Santa Barbara is the source of some of the best Cali Chards. The 2006 vintage was particularly cool and long allowing the grapes an extended hang time which produced intense, concentrated flavors. This beauty was mostly barrel-fermented (6% in tank) and then underwent malolactic fermentation and sur lie aging in barrel (75% French oak, 25% American - 24% new) for eight months. The result is a rich, creamy, buttery wine with more than enough fruit to counter the oak. With only 13.5% alcohol and 0.65% acidity, it is nicely balanced. It won gold medals at three prestigious wine competitions.

Three Saints Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley-California, 2007 ($19.99) and Dierberg Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley-California, 2007 ($29.99) - These Chards from the Dierberg winery are exceptionally good in their respective price ranges. Both have good balance of fruit and acidity with just enough oak character for complexity. The Dierberg bottling, from the best barrels, was given more lees aging and has a rare refinement that sets it apart from the competition. Jim Dierberg was raised on a Missouri farm. (At age 11, he won the St. Louis County Fair with his champion pig, Buster.) When Jim has a passion for something, he acts quickly and decisively. He proposed to his wife, Mary, on their first date! Bankers by profession, the couple developed an initial passion for wine during trips to Germany in the 1960s. Back home they discovered an old winery in Hermann, Missouri called Hermannhof, founded in 1852, for sale, and they bought it. The wines at Hermannhof are good, but the Missouri climate is not conducive to growing the best European varietals. They fell in love with and purchased the Star Lane Ranch east of Santa Barbara while on a business trip. Its warm climate is great for Cabernet. The couple subsequently purchased cooler vineyards in Santa Maria and Santa Rita Hills for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The Pinots are quite good, and we may carry them in the future.

Other Whites
Kenwood White Table Wine 2007 ($7.99) - Here is a perfect solution for everyday enjoyment in these trying economic times. Unknown to most, Kenwood has always made small quantities of flawless, inexpensive wine from leftover batches and some purchased fruit. It is a blend of 65% Chardonnay, 30% Sauv Blanc, and 5% Chenin Blanc. A hint of the Sauvignon shows in the nose. This is a light, crisp, clean, and very pleasant wine with a touch of creaminess from the 20% of the Chardonnay that was barrel fermented, which is unheard of at this price!

Angels’ Share: Scholium Project ‘Heliopolis’ Verdelho, Delu Vyd, Clarksburg, 2006 ($24.99) - Winemaker Abe Schoener is somewhere between a radical, an anarchist, and a heretic. He will either be remembered as a genius or a nut, but not as just another, mainstream winemaker. He buys grapes only from vineyards that impress him, and he makes some of the best, most interesting wines in California (and a few in France) as well as some of the worst. In other words, he doesn’t play it safe; he takes chances. His wines are always exciting, sometimes challenging. We have three other wines by Abe, but this is the first one in our newsletter. Made from the Verdelho grape, which is most closely associated with Spain, it is Sauvignon Blanc-like but unique with an olive oil-gold color and unusual aromatics of earth and brine. The long palate is smooth, elegant, meaty, and complex with baked apples, dried apricots, citrus, and bacon notes. Space precludes a full discussion of Abe’s philosophy, techniques, and wines, but you can read Eric Asimov’s take in the New York Times at www.nytimes.com/2008/09/10/dining/10pour.html. 

Angels’ Share: Surh-Luchtel Viognier “Fortunati Vineyard,” Napa (Oak Knoll), 2006 ($32.99) - This is one of the best and most interesting white wines I have tasted in months. It is not a wonderful Viognier because it does not have much Viognier character. It is, however, an outstanding, lees aged, unoaked white wine with a perfect balance of clean fruit and refreshing acidity. It shows neither the sweetness nor the high alcohol typical of Viognier. Yum, yum, yum! Don Surh and Gary Luchtel make small batches of wine from purchased grapes. We also carry their Gary’s Vineyard Pinot Noir. Go to www.surhluchtel for more info.