2011 Peter Martin Ray Chardonnay
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Tasting notes
The 2011 Chardonnay Peter Martin Ray is a bit reduced today. Smoke, slate and a host of mineral notes wrap around the palate in an intense, taut Chardonnay built on pure salinity and intensity. Bright lemon, citrus and grapefruit notes abound, but the 2011 never comes together, even after a number of hours of being opened. For now, the 2011 remains a mystery. If the reduction disappears, the wine may merit a more positive note, but I am not sure that will happen.
Critic scores
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2011 Chardonnay Peter Martin Ray shows the pedigree of this great Santa Cruz Mountains site. A stunning wine, the 2011 emerges from the glass with smoke, crushed rocks, savory herbs, dried apricots, graphite and citrus. Readers should do whatever they can to taste this dazzling, world-class Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay.
The 2011 Chardonnay Peter Martin Ray shows the pedigree of this great Santa Cruz Mountains site. A stunning wine, the 2011 emerges from the glass with smoke, crushed rocks, savory herbs, dried apricots, graphite and citrus. Readers should do whatever they can to taste this dazzling, world-class Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2020. Proprietor John Raytek is one of this country’s most promising young winemakers. His professional resume includes a stint as sommelier at the Little Nell in Aspen. Later he was assistant winemaker at Copain and also spent time at Rhys. Raytek is married to Phoebe Bass, whose family owns the Porter-Bass Vineyard, but adds he gets no preferential treatment when it comes to buying fruit! The 2011 Chardonnays and Pinots are both dazzling. I tasted the 2011 Chardonnays from tank just prior to bottling. Raytek ages his Chardonnays for 12 months in oak (with no lees stirring) followed by 5-8 months in oak, a style of elevage preferred by a number of top estates in California and Burgundy. The Pinots are all made with some amount of whole clusters, usually around 40-45%, but they are totally integrated and virtually impossible to detect in the wines. I also had a chance to re-taste the 2010s from bottle. Those wines were just as fabulous as they were from barrel, if not a little better. Simply put, I can’t recommend these wines highly enough. Tel. (707) 473-9482
About the producer
Created in 2005 by John Raytek, Ceritas is one of California’s most exciting producers. The project is focused on making single-site wines from Northern California’s coastal regions, largely Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.