Cold Heaven Viognier, Santa Barbara, California ‘02
Grapes: Viognier
By the Bottle: £18.50, By the Dozen: £210 (£17.50 each)
Absolutely nothing to do with Chardonnay BUT it ticks all the boxes for what a really good Chardonnay should taste like. From the heart of the new world but with a style that would shame many a classy aristocrat from closer to home. Viognier’s beautiful fruit is can be shy in a finished wine. Worse it is often exploited giving a one dimensional blousy number that would impress no one but the winemaker’s mother. Anyone contemplating this marvellous grape should buy a bottle and taste the benchmark.
A truly a global recipe for fine wine. Many a winemaker could learn from the fruit management, where natural opulence is handled with gentle restraint, brilliant wood handling to support and enhance rather than dominate the fruit, the sensitive crispness achieve through the finest acid balance and finally the thoughtful preservation of the mineral character from the vineyard terroir that grew these grapes.
Fantastic, but don’t drink it too cold.
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By the Bottle: £18.50, By the Dozen: £210 (£17.50 each)
Absolutely nothing to do with Chardonnay BUT it ticks all the boxes for what a really good Chardonnay should taste like. From the heart of the new world but with a style that would shame many a classy aristocrat from closer to home. Viognier’s beautiful fruit is can be shy in a finished wine. Worse it is often exploited giving a one dimensional blousy number that would impress no one but the winemaker’s mother. Anyone contemplating this marvellous grape should buy a bottle and taste the benchmark.
A truly a global recipe for fine wine. Many a winemaker could learn from the fruit management, where natural opulence is handled with gentle restraint, brilliant wood handling to support and enhance rather than dominate the fruit, the sensitive crispness achieve through the finest acid balance and finally the thoughtful preservation of the mineral character from the vineyard terroir that grew these grapes.
Fantastic, but don’t drink it too cold.
Back to the list
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