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Rutherford Ranch Chardonnay

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$10.95 $8.99
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Year: 2009 Region: Napa Valley Country: USA - California Wine Advocate: 88 Wine & Spirits: 90 White Wine	Add to Cart:

"Offers up aromas of nectarines, orange blossoms, and peaches" (WA)

"Rutherford Ranch is another example of a high volume producer that consistently delivers a fantastic product. As a wine enthusiast (not capitalized), I love nothing more than finding a small producer that produces an incredible product that’s completely under-the-radar. The problem is, one of two things generally happen. 1.) The small producer starts buying more grapes and becomes a bigger producer with lower quality or 2.) They get discovered and prices skyrocket. Bottom line: it’s great to find some go-to lables that produce wine in such a quantity that it’s easy to get a hold of and has a high level of consistency.

My Short List of High Value/High Volume Producers (sticking to the U.S. here):

Hahn Estates (All)

Beringer (Regular, Reserve)

Mondavi (Regular and Reserve, but not “Private Selection”)

Columbia Crest (All)

Talbott (All)

Add to that list, Rutherford Ranch, because this Chardonnay is a proven value as is their Cabernet. The Chardonnay is textbook for Napa, displaying aromas of tangerine, honey, bread and smoke. It has a nice texture and a persistence that’s impressive for an $11 wine, likely due to the barrel fermentation that occured for part of this wine.

Rutherford Ranch’s Napa Chardonnay received 88 points from Robert Parker. It makes a perfect pairing for any grilled fish or chicken or all alone for that matter! I made pan seared Atlantic salmon cakes with an arugula salad with goat cheese and candied pecans. Perfect." (Nickel & Dime)

Winery Notes:
This Napa Valley Chardonnay starts off with aromas of bright fruit aromas of pear, with fuji apple, creamy caramel and barrel spice. Mouth-filling flavors of crisp apple, apricot, spicy cinnamon and vanilla.

Food Recommendation: This Chardonnay is perfect for sipping on its own or with grilled salmon or sea bass with fresh herbs.

Winemaker's Notes: The 2009 growing season was relatively uneventful - a cool but dry spring and only about 5 days over 100 degrees (compared to the usual 10 to 14). Chardonnay accounted for the largest percentage of the Napa Valley harvest - nearly 18%. Our winemaking team selects vineyard sites from both cool and warm sub-regions of the Napa Valley to capture the best qualities of Chardonnay.

To preserve the fresh fruit characteristics, the grapes are gently pressed and transferred to stainless steel tanks. Part of the lot is barrel fermented for greater richness and complexity.

This product was added to our catalog on Wednesday 02 November, 2011.

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