Wine By Nine

White Wine by Hanzell from Sonoma County, California. As this was Michael Terrien's first vintage making the wine, he was focused on determining how Hanzell Chardonnay distinguishes itself in the company of other California Chardonnays. Hanzell's recipe is unique: grapes are crushed before pressing, fermentation occurs in tank rather than barrel, new oak barrels are used only moderately, and malo-lactic fermentation is largely suppressed. The winemaking is so traditional as to be, in an odd way, iconoclast and new. Hanzell recipe honors a lighter winemaking touch and permits clarity of expression. The wine is about place rather than ingredients; traditional, but intentional. Glistening and bright with citrus peel (mostly grapefruit) and bread dough aromas of yeast and wet flour. Subtle flower aromas lift the pear and apple scent and the honeyed, oily richness that develops with bottle age is just beginning to emerge upon the wine's release. Few wineries in California can craft a Chard as rich, balanced and ageworthy as this. In its youth this '05 is flashy in lemondrop, pear and spicy anise, with a honeyed finish and crisp acidity. It's quite addictively brilliant, a wine whose lush harmony mesmerizes the palate. But Hanzell Chards invariably age well, and this is a wine you can dependably put into your cellar for 5, 10, 15 years, even longer, as it continues to evolve and become more limpid and minerally. -Wine Enthusiast

White Wine by Hanzell from Sonoma County, California. Massive, complex, with amazing depth, an opulent, voluptuous wine of tremendous power and authority. Its so beautiful now, you almost hesitate to cellar it, but these Hanzell Chards are built for the long haul... -Wine Enthusiast Honey and grapefruit, typical markers for Hanzells Chardonnay, are prominent at first, but then behind these are compelling characters of pastry shell (baked butter and flour), a delicate toast character from the barrels, almonds, milk and bread dough. A full, round presence in the mouth is supported by acidity that saves the broad and rich texture from being cloying. This vintage should mature in 2012 and carry through to 2020. - Michael Terrien

White Wine by Talbott from Central Coast, California. The best barrels from Talbott Chardonnay, Sleepy Hollow Vineyard were reserved and bottled unfined and unfiltered and without cold stabilization, true to the Grand Cru tradition. The resulting wine is concentrated, rich, and opulent with lush mouth feel and spine-tingling structure. This 2003 vintage shows almost unfathomable balance between richness, flavor, and acid. The nose shows lemon, tart pear, white peach, and nectarine with toast and cinnamon notes. On the palate, the wine is lovely, round, and supple with exquisite balance and forward tropical fruit and vibrant acid that lingers through the long finish. While we provide extensive bottle age in the winery cellar before release, we believe this vintage of Cuvee Cynthia will cellar well for five to ten years more.

White Wine by HdV from Carneros, California. In its early stages, this wine exhibits intense mineral aromas of pear and apricot immersed in rich spicy notes. The mouth offers layers of stone fruit and floral notes followed by an elegant backbone of acid, carrying the wine to a long finish. Similar to the 2000 Chardonnay, we expect this wine to age beautifully as it builds exponentially from year to year in the bottle. A blend of our oldest blocks, this wine was aged for 11 months in French oak on the lees. The 2005 HdV Chardonnay will be a special wine to cellar. Forty-five percent new French oak has been used for this vintage, bottled without fining or filtration. The 2005 HdV Chardonnay currently favors decanting an hour before serving. It should continue to improve for another six to ten years.

White Wine by Sonoma Coast Vineyards from Sonoma County, California. The taste profile offers a creme brulee richness in the framework of a fresh, silky acid matrix. The fruit content replicates zesty lemon and fresh pear with a center core of tropical fruit. Malolactic fermentation sur lies results in a graceful and well-structured palate. The aging potential for this wine should be exceptional given the bright acidity and the subtle integration of oak with the wine's complex fruit profile. This wine will evolve dramatically for the next 3 years and will continue to evolve at a more subtle rate for 4-6 years.

White Wine by Beringer from Napa Valley, California. The Sbragia Limited Release Chardonnay represents the selection of the selection. The vineyards Ed Sbragia customarily chooses to use in his Private Reserve Chardonnay are located around the town of Yountville where daytime temperatures slowly climb as the cooling morning fog recedes south to the San Pablo Bay. This significant diurnal shift allows the grapes to maintain their acidity, which is essential to balancing the ripe, rich flavors they develop during warm afternoons. One of these vineyards, Gamble Ranch, consistently provides flavors that Winemaster Ed Sbragia calls unctuous, and in 2005, he decided that this fruit would be ideal for his 2005 Sbragia Limited Release Chardonnay. The wine has a pretty yellow gemstone color, luscious aromas of brown spice, lemon peel, tarte tatin, butterscotch and brown spice that lead into a rich and creamy mouthfeel showcasing grilled pineapple, brown spice, crisp apples and citrus peel flavors. With a wine with my name on it you know that its got to be my signature style, big, with more and more aromas and flavors that invite you back. In the 2005 vintage, gorgeous aromas of citrus and butterscotch greet the nose as rich flavors of lemon, creme br?lee and spice fill the mouth and linger throughout a long and saturated finish. Enjoy! -Winemaster, Ed Sbragia

White Wine by Rochioli from Russian River, California. Color: Straw yellow. Aroma: Aromas of ripe apple, tropical fruit and a touch of spice. Taste: Rich apple flavors and a crisp acidity.

White Wine by Silver from Central Coast, California. For the winemaking team that brings you Caymus, Mer Soleil, and and Belle Glos! This second vintage follows last year's successful debut of Silver, an effort to unite the crisp mineral essence of classic Chablis style with the tropical elements found in Chardonnay of the Pacific coastline. Using Chardonnay grown in special blocks of the Mer Soleil Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands of Monterey County, we harvested the grapes when just fully ripe, their gold color hued with green, expressing clean aromas of Chardonnay fruit and firm acidity. The result is our latest presentation of a Chardonnay we consider as sleek and cool as Silver. -Charlie Wagner II, Winemaker This unoaked Chardonnay is a light gold color with a pale green tint. Clean, lively aromas of honeydew melon and green apple carry over to delicate tropical fruit flavors of pineapple and papaya, balanced with crisp mineral.

White Wine by Cakebread from Napa Valley, California. Cakebread Cellars' Napa Valley Chardonnay is light straw in color with a glint of gold. Its aromas are reminiscent of green apples and the faint scent of apricots with a clean scent of mineral suggestive of flint. These impressions are repeated on the palate with a very slight buttery finish and a subtle hint of French oak vanillin in the background. Good depth with an ideal balance of fruit and crisp acidity lead into a fresh, silky finish.

White Wine by Franciscan from Carneros, California. Crisp and full bodied with a rich, creamy texture. An abundance of pear, sweet vanilla and hints of minerals round out the supple notes of toast, leading to a long, rich finish.

White Wine by Mer Soleil from Central Coast, California. This marks the 13th vintage for Mer Soleil Chardonnay, and captures the best of what the coastal landscape of Monterey County's wine country offers each year. Lots were aged separately in French oak barrels, about 40 percent of which were new oak. The wine was then crafted in the cellar until it was ready for bottling, producing the fully-ripened, sea-and-sun brilliance of flavor for which Mer Soleil is known. The wine opens with tropical fruit and honeysuckle aromas. Luxurious flavors of creme brulee and even a hint of butter are framed by notes of fine oak and the lively acidity of citrus zest. The mouthfeel is full and lush and brings all the wine's elements through to a long, persistent finish. Exotic aromas of orange marmalade, lychee, honey and brown spice. Oily flavors of candied mango, lemon butter and pineapple. Honeyed close exudes butter. -Wine News

White Wine by Chalk Hill from Sonoma County, California. This is perhaps the most elegant Chardonnay ever produced by Chalk Hill. The wine displays the tropical fruit and mineral characteristics of the estate, and is delicately infused with citrus, pear and honeysuckle, an imprint from the cool vintage conditions.