2007 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast
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Tasting notes
Good full yellow. More minerally on the nose than the Napa Valley offering, with piquant fruit notes of tangerine and pink grapefruit. More intensely flavored and less sweet than the Napa release, but distinctly laid-back and linear today. Conveys the firm acid impression of a cool year-or is this simply a function of the phenolic lift on the back end? A classy, low-fat wine with a light touch. In fact, notes winemaker Erin Green, the 2007 Pahlmeyer chardonnays finished with lower pHs than the 2006s.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
For starters, the 2007 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast may be one of Pahlmeyer’s finest Chardonnays to date (it’s coming right on the heels of their two brilliant 2006 Chardonnays). Most of the fruit comes from the Ritchie Vineyard, a site from which Mark Aubert also produces incredible wines. This 1,600-case cuvee is fashioned from the old Wente and Mt. Eden clones. Like the finest California Chardonnays, it reveals a light greenish hue to its straw color in addition to a beautiful perfume of nectarines, brioche, subtle smoke, crushed rocks, and gobs of white peach and pineapple fruit. This full-bodied beauty should drink easily for 5-6 years. Things just seem to get better and better at Pahlmeyer, a long-standing, brilliant, remarkably consistent source for one of Napa’s finest Merlots, Chardonnays, and Pinot Noirs. Tel. (707) 255-2321; Fax (707) 255-6786