Name
Chardonnay
Order #
915609
Producer
Foxglove
Vintage
2010
Price
$14.99
About
One of the key wines to have in the arsenal year round is that go-to, all-purpose $15 Chardonnay. We always like to seek out as many as we can find, but there is a lot of junk out there in the marketplace. The position tends to be filled with what we could refer to around here as the 'boring usual suspects'. But it is cause for excitement when we can find something exciting to add to the short list.
The winery is Varner, whom some of you may know from massive reviews by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. They are Chardonnay specialists in particular and have produced premium vineyard bottlings from Santa Cruz, also the home of Chardonnay icon Mt. Eden. The Foxglove label has always been the value negociant brand, though you will find no mention of it on the Varner website. But it never tasted like this 2005 does! Is it the vintage or have the twins, Jim and Bob Varner, just gotten better at what they do? Fresh nose of apple and citrus, bright but weighty fruit in the mouth. Clean flavors and the kind of delicacy and focus you simply don't see in the usual plodding examples at this price level, this was clearly made by people who wanted to make something they would drink themselves. From Edna Ranch, the wine is done in all stainless steel with lees stirring and no malo-lactic fermentation. So it manages to be rich, fresh and bright at the same time. Great value.
What makes this wine so special? This wine is made from a single appellation, the Edna Valley, unlike most of the wines that occupy this price area. Second, the Varner Twins, who also have made a high scoring Chardonnay or two under their own eponymous label, are all about nature and showing the terroir. They have more in common with the small French producers they used to sell when they had an import company than with the typical 'tank farm' value domestic brands. This wine is done completely in stainless steel, with lees stirring and no malolactic. There's also no residual sugar, oak chips, or any other winemaking tricks. Fresh, bright and forward, again surprising quality for the fare.
The winery is Varner, whom some of you may know from massive reviews by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. They are Chardonnay specialists in particular and have produced premium vineyard bottlings from Santa Cruz, also the home of Chardonnay icon Mt. Eden. The Foxglove label has always been the value negociant brand, though you will find no mention of it on the Varner website. But it never tasted like this 2005 does! Is it the vintage or have the twins, Jim and Bob Varner, just gotten better at what they do? Fresh nose of apple and citrus, bright but weighty fruit in the mouth. Clean flavors and the kind of delicacy and focus you simply don't see in the usual plodding examples at this price level, this was clearly made by people who wanted to make something they would drink themselves. From Edna Ranch, the wine is done in all stainless steel with lees stirring and no malo-lactic fermentation. So it manages to be rich, fresh and bright at the same time. Great value.
What makes this wine so special? This wine is made from a single appellation, the Edna Valley, unlike most of the wines that occupy this price area. Second, the Varner Twins, who also have made a high scoring Chardonnay or two under their own eponymous label, are all about nature and showing the terroir. They have more in common with the small French producers they used to sell when they had an import company than with the typical 'tank farm' value domestic brands. This wine is done completely in stainless steel, with lees stirring and no malolactic. There's also no residual sugar, oak chips, or any other winemaking tricks. Fresh, bright and forward, again surprising quality for the fare.
Review
2008: 91 Points Robert Parker
"The sensational 2008 Chardonnay Central Coast, which is fermented and aged completely in stainless steel with no malolactic fermentation, is a 30,000-cuvee of fabulous Chardonnay. Loads of tropical fruit, honeysuckle, and orange blossom notes fill the olfactory sense, as does the luscious medium-bodied texture on the palate. The wine is buttressed by crisp underlying acidity, and the result is a fresh, naked expression of Chardonnay that is top-flight. Drink it over the next year or so. $17"
Visit Website"The sensational 2008 Chardonnay Central Coast, which is fermented and aged completely in stainless steel with no malolactic fermentation, is a 30,000-cuvee of fabulous Chardonnay. Loads of tropical fruit, honeysuckle, and orange blossom notes fill the olfactory sense, as does the luscious medium-bodied texture on the palate. The wine is buttressed by crisp underlying acidity, and the result is a fresh, naked expression of Chardonnay that is top-flight. Drink it over the next year or so. $17"
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