2018 Estate Chardonnay - Spear Vineyards & Winery

Juicy Meyer Lemon, blooming jasmine, white peach. Ripe Granny Smith, crushed chalk, tart bartlett pear. Pineapple slice, grapefruit zest, and honeydew highlight a vibrant, nervy, and energetic fruit core intricately complicated by sea spray and pronounced saline minerality. Hints of honeysuckle and spring flowers gently impart charming floral fragrance while Greek yogurt and cool smoke reveal a lightly reductive and slightly leesy edge. Cardamom, clove, and vanilla emerge to expose a subtle dusting of baking spice that does not detract from gorgeously salty and mineral-rich undertones. Driving, racy, and electric on the palate; nobly exhibiting incredible intensity and an almost Montrachet-esque sense of elegant power that concludes in a long earth-driven finish. Medium plus in body with incredible focus and balance carried by absolutely radiant acidity. This 2018 Estate Chardonnay by Spear Vineyards & Winery is an outstandingly complex and terroir expressive white from the Santa Rita Hills.

Santa Barbara County's Santa Rita Hills is an appellation that is primarily known for the production of world-class Pinot Noir, and although the Pinot coming from this region is unquestionably sublime some experts have asserted that the area's soils may actually better suited to the production of Chardonnay. This bottling, crafted by Spear Vineyards & Winery using Chardonnay sourced from their estate vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills, proves that this bold assertion actually has some merit. As soon as its cork is pulled this wine bursts with wonderfully expressive and wildly energetic fruit that remains tense and restrained without an ounce of fat or flab. Its pristine mineral underbelly provides an intricate reflection of Santa Barbara County terroir that - with the backing of terrific acidity - helps shape a wine with near Burgundian levels of verve, transparency, and finesse. This is a beautifully executed creation by one of Santa Barbara's most exciting estate producers.