To anyone who has ever gone to a wine tasting and said, “oh no chardonnay for me, thank you. I’ll skip that one” – I see you, I recognize you and hell, in a past life, I WAS you. I wore my ABC (anything but chardonnay) drinker badge as a symbol of pride, assuming that all chardonnay was thick, chewy and reeked of the artificial butter you add on to your movie theater popcorn. So, what changed? In short, I tried chablis and a Chassagne Montrachet and my perception of what chardonnay was would be forever changed. It was after this that any time someone told me “oh we make chardonnay but not in an oaky style” that my ears would perk up and I’d give it a try. And you know what? It seemed like the wine world had moved more in this direction and I was able to find wines that more closely mirrored the white burgundy I loved so much. Here are 10 of the chardonnays that changed my mind about chardonnay:
- Sangiacomo Robert’s Road, $65: This is the chardonnay that inspired this entire blogpost. Hailing from the Petaluma Gap, this chardonnay is crisp – all honeycrisp apple and Asian pear notes to me. James MacPhail, one of my absolute favorite Sonoma County winemakers (whom I recently got to do a private virtual tasting with!!) makes this gem of a chardonnay that was an instant obsession for me.
- Liquid Farm White Hill, $45: When I went to Santa Barbara last year, the tasting notes for the White Hill chardonnay compared the wine to chablis. That was all I needed to hear – it’s got the minerality you typically only find in Burgundy and it was a no brainer to just bring home multiple bottles of this after our trip. It lasted less than 6 months because every time we had sushi it was always one of my first suggestions.
- Hazelfern Little Hells, $55: In writing this post, I went to the Hazelfern site to link this and, of course, saw it was sold out. I’m always torn to share Hazelfern as a recommendation – their wines are killer, this wine has the same apple and Asian pear notes as the Sangiacomo that I love above, but they sell out SO quickly and it keeps getting harder to get your hands on them. That said, I want everyone to know about the amazing things they are doing at their old horse barn, so consider yourself a lucky one to be in the know 😉 Keep your eyes on the website for when they release the next Little Hells vintage or pick up one of their others in the meantime if you’re more of a chardonnay lover!
- Small Vines TBH Vineyard Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, $72: My friend Cari of Wine Hardware HATES chardonnay…like to the point she won’t even try it at tastings. So, imagine my shock when she texted me after recommending Small Vines to her telling me she loved this chardonnay. Part of me was shocked, but a bigger part of me wasn’t – Small Vines would be called Burgundy in a blind tasting lineup majority of the time. The wines are old world in style with crisp and clean notes touched by a kiss of salinity. Start here if you’re REALLY convinced chardonnay is not for you.
- Bricoleur Unoaked Chardonnay, $32: Another tale of ABC drinkers for you – this time my own mother and sister (I know it’s shocking to me too). Chris who runs the tasting room has been a friend of my family’s for years and knows they don’t like chardonnay, so I was shocked when he told them “oh you’ll like this.” This wine sees no oak or malolactic fermentation, both of which are associated with the buttery effect
- Gary Farrell Olivet Lane, $45: Probably one of the most aromatic on this list with some unmissable honeysuckle characteristics, Gary Farrell’s Olivet Lane chardonnay is a wine I keep wanting to revisit (but alas I drank the only bottle I had). The vineyard site sits in between both a warmer and cooler part of Russian River Valley, and the cooler nighttime breezes create a balanced chardonnay with low sugars.
- Big Table Farm Wild Bee, $30: A budget chardonnay that drinks like an expensive chardonnay. This is easy drinking chardonnay with bright acidity that begs to be paired with food, but could also easily replace your sauvignon blanc and rosé as a springtime porch pounder. There is a reason why Big Table Farm has a cult-like following.
- Lioco Estero Chardonnay, $40: The only Santa Cruz Mountain fruit to make its way on this list, this is always what I have to drink every time I visit Lioco’s adorable downtown Healdsburg tasting room. It’s got bright citrus notes that practically beg you to pair it with seafood…and hear I go now dreaming of a plate of shrimp scampi pasta now.
- Dusky Goose chardonnay, $60: The owners of Dusky Goose asked kickass female winemaker (and Willamette Valley legend) Lynn Penner-Ash if she could make a white wine in addition to their pinot noirs. Bless these owners, because what was created is not only one of the most beautiful expressions of chardonnay I’ve tried from the Willamette Valley, but one of the most beautiful expressions of chardonnay I’ve tried period. It tastes like the custard part of a vanilla/lemon creme brulee and I mean that in the best way possible.
- Evening Lands Seven Springs, $35: My family did a white wine blind tasting and a few people thought this was sauvignon blanc due to the high acidity and clean finish. When you know it is chardonnay, however, you can tell – coming from a rockier vineyard site, it has beautiful Meyer lemon and a slight ginger note, with an elegant and rounded finish.
Let this serve as a reminder to not rule out an entire grape variety and find a winemaker or region that goes better with your own palate! The wine world is broad and there’s something for everyone out there, but I, for one, would love to see more chardonnay converts 😉
