2017 White Bones Chardonnay

The nose of the 2017 White Bones Chardonnay jumps out of the glass with its forward personality and its balsamic aromas that mix aromatic herbs and a minty touch. It's more exuberant than the 2018 or any of the White Stones I tasted next to it. The flavors are intense and pungent, with volume and length. The vines are organically farmed, which is not easy in the zone, mainly because of the ants! That has a great effect in the yields, which are reduced, and the juice is very concentrated but shows superb balance. As with the others, this is more in the style of the 2015, whereas the 2018 follows the path of the 2016. 6,000 bottles produced.

The subtlest whiff of struck match mingles effortlessly with stone fruits on the nose. A complex palate that is mouth-filling and at the same time supremely refreshing with a tangerine/mandarin acidity. This is repeatedly one of Argentina’s finest Chardonnays, it is subtle and elegant yet with bags of concentration and intensity. (AC)

Bright light yellow. Tighter on the nose than the White Stones, offering pristine but subdued scents of lemon oil, dried rosemary and iodiney minerality. Some unabsorbed CO2--not to mention its 8.1 g/l acidity--is current accentuating this Chardonnay's remarkable inner-mouth grip and urgency. White orchard fruits and citrus zests and oils stain the palate without leaving any impression of weight. For all its dusty density, this extraordinary wine is remarkably light on its feet. Finishes bone-dry and saline, with terrific cut and rising length. The White Stones seems almost sweet by comparison to this wine--and it's not!. A stunning pair of Chardonnays, perhaps the best to date, from Catena's high-altitude Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary, which the firm purchased in 1992 (and planted between 1994 and 1997) at a time when few wine farmers thought they could consistently ripen grapes there. Neither of these wines saw any new oak, as winemaker Vigil used only second-, third- and fourth-use French barrels.