Wine Doctrine
Every tasting note

Reviews

1,156 notes

2013

TOR Chardonnay Cuvée Torchiana

California · Napa Valley

A nice and smooth bottle of wine, with notes of lightly whipped lemon curd, pear, and some minerality on the back end. Much less complexity than I had anticipated, and a lot less energy and verve as…

Reviewed 26 March 2016
2014

Cliff Lede Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley

California · Napa Valley

Lighter notes of pineapple, apple, lemongrass, and flint/chert. Not especially complex or gleaming with any sort of notable flavor depth. A fine drink for a hot spring day in Napa Valley, but nothing…

Reviewed 25 March 2016
2008

Salinia Chardonnay Heintz Ranch

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

Tasted side-by-side with the 2006 Salinia Heintz Chardonnay. Same specific CT notes on this wine as on 10/9/2015. I bumped it up a point to 95, as that lovely sherry/Jura style was rocking perfectly…

Reviewed 21 March 2016
2006

Salinia Chardonnay Heintz Ranch

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

Tasted side-by-side with the 2008 Salinia Heintz Chardonnay. Same as my specific CT notes from 07/5/2015, except that I feel as though this has smoothed-out even more so than 8 months ago. Ready to…

Reviewed 21 March 2016
2012

Talley Vineyards Chardonnay Rosemary's Vineyard

Central Coast · Arroyo Grande Valley

Good, not great. Nothing memorable. Notes of mineral-inflected lemon oil, green apple, quince, and granite. Epitomized a "standard California chardonnay" in that it offered up a decent drinking…

Reviewed 13 March 2016
2012

Eric Kent Wine Cellars Chardonnay Sonoma Coast

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

Same notes as 01/25/2016. "It was fine," is the only phrase that comes to mind. Buttered popcorn and lemon curd; two flavors I like in a chardonnay if there is something else to elevate it. Not here.

Reviewed 13 March 2016
2010

Aubert Chardonnay Lauren Estate Vineyard

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

PnP with beautiful notes of lemon curd, lemon meringue, pineapple, honey, and some tropical fruit. Hints of poached pear, stone (granite), and lemongrass.

Reviewed 25 February 2016
2012

TOR Chardonnay Cuvée Torchiana

California · Napa Valley

PnP with steely notes of lemon rind, pineapple, pear, and a wet slate-like minerality. With some air, the vanillin oak influence began to pleasantly show itself. This is a little more…

Reviewed 3 February 2016
2013

Oyster Bay Chardonnay

South Island · Marlborough

Mineral inflected lemon, bitter apple, and unripe pear notes. Came off more like a Viognier or a Sauvignon Blanc framed by a prominent wet slate note.

Reviewed 30 January 2016
2013

Meiomi Chardonnay

USA · California

Does its job as a simple Chardonnay. Not unpleasant, but mostly forgettable. Notes of buttered popcorn, lemon, and vanilla.

Reviewed 30 January 2016
2012

Eric Kent Wine Cellars Chardonnay Sonoma Coast

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

A decent Chardonnay, but nothing that evokes any sort of emotional or memorable response. Notes of pear, vanilla, and lemon curd. Not very complex by any stretch, but an ok Monday night sipper.

Reviewed 25 January 2016
2007

Salinia Chardonnay Heintz Ranch

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

Same as my previous CT notes except that it lost a little "oomph" after about three hours of slow O2. Though I think this has the ability to go a number of years more, I think drinking now (and…

Reviewed 24 January 2016
2013

Château Boswell Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard

Sonoma County · Russian River Valley

PnP with notes of honeysuckle, lemon, popcorn, pear, and quince. Finished with a stoney minerality; just a tad pithy and tart on the back end. Performed very well in the beginning, with a clipped…

Reviewed 31 December 2015
2013

Lewis Cellars Chardonnay Reserve

California · Napa Valley

PnP with notes of lemon curd, honey, vanilla, brioche, toasted marshmallow, yellow pear, and a hint of wet rock. There was an initial faint metallic tinge on the finish, but that quickly dissipated…

Reviewed 22 December 2015
2010

Salinia Sauvignon Blanc

Sonoma County · Chalk Hill

Bottled in Magnums only. An intriguing Sauvignon Blanc, with notes of grilled pineapple, toasted walnuts, lemon oil, green apple, wet rock, and wood. On initial PnP, the wood element was dominant,…

Reviewed 21 December 2015
2013

Mail Road Wines Chardonnay Mount Carmel

Central Coast · Sta. Rita Hills

A very pretty and feminine Chardonnay, with soft citrus and vanilla notes cascading across the palate. Additional notes of lemon curd, poached pear, green apple, popcorn, and a subtle minerality that…

Reviewed 19 December 2015
2007

Salinia Chardonnay Heintz Ranch

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

Similar to my previous CT notes. PnP with a strong, up-front Sherry/Jura style; notes of poached pear, butterscotch, roasted hazelnuts, crackerjack, BBQ'd pineapple, mesquite honey, lemon oil, and…

Reviewed 8 December 2015
2013

Rivers-Marie Chardonnay Sonoma Coast

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

One of the best QPRs out there for this style of Chardonnay. Really nice balance, texture, and layers of fruit flavors. As others have mentioned, the oak influence is evident, but I thought the fruit…

Reviewed 7 December 2015
2013

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Chardonnay Karia

California · Napa Valley

PnP with notes of pear, citrus and lemon, flint, grass, and a hint of vanilla. Not a whole lot of broad fruit flavors in this wine, with a bit of a pithy aftertaste that is somewhat distracting.…

Reviewed 5 December 2015
2012

Ceritas Chardonnay Porter-Bass Vineyard

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

PnP with notes of lemon curd, pear, bitter apple, saline, straw, and a hit of minerality on the mid-palate (wet granite, gray fines, graphite, limestone). An extremely feminine and delicate…

Reviewed 1 December 2015
2012

Bevan Cellars Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard

Sonoma County · Russian River Valley

PnP with a very pithy, linear texture. The stemmy bitterness overwhelmed what remained of the tight lemon, unripe pear and apple, dry granite stone, and astringent lilac flavors. There was…

Reviewed 20 November 2015
2012

Eric Kent Wine Cellars Chardonnay Sangiacomo Green Acres Hill

Sonoma County · Sonoma Coast

PnP with notes of popcorn, pineapple, asian pear, vanilla, toast, and a light touch of honey. Clean and well delineated, this Chardonnay drank smooth and solid throughout the course of two hours.

Reviewed 27 October 2015