Robert Mondavi Winery Reserve Chardonnay

Leuchtendes mittleres Gelbgrün, silberfarbene Reflexe. Zarte Nuancen von Bourbonvanille, frischer Banane und Guave, ein Hauch von Mokka und Zitronengras ist unterlegt, einladendes Bukett. Straff, feine gelbe Tropenfrucht, ein Hauch von Mango und Blütenhonig, frischer Säurebogen, wirkt leichtfüßig, zart nussiger Karamelltouch im Abgang, salzige Mineralität im Nachhall, gut entwickelt. (2021–2040)

Beautiful white with sliced apples and minerals and hints of vanilla and cream. Some biscuit. Full-bodied, very focused and tight with a driven finish. Extremely long and lively. Bright acidity kicks in at the end. Lovely now to drink, but will improve with age.

Steel acidity lifts the oak and fleshy body of this reserve-worthy wine—the core of flavor built around lush, decadent flavors of honey graham cracker, baked apple and lemon meringue. The richness is rewarding and softly beguiling on the palate. Virginie Boone

Firm and fresh white with sliced apples, lemons, limes and hints of toasted oak. Full-bodied, linear and tight with a firm finish. Needs time to open. Mostly Hyde vineyard and all Carneros. Better after 2019.

This is a well-made, powerful wine. Elegant, integrated and effusive in oak, it has pretty apple blossom aromas and boldly layered flavors of green apple, crème brûlée and lemon meringue. The finish is lush in a honeycomb tone. This will do well in the cellar; enjoy 2020–2025.

Aromas of cooked apple and pear with some vanilla and cream. Full body, layered and fruity. Fresh acidity and a crisp finish with underlying praline and dried lemons. Another delicious chardonnay from here. Drink now.

Golden apple and honey flavors commingle on the palate, framed by high-toned acidity and toasted oak richness. Medium-bodied and moderately ripe, it offers a sophisticated, food-friendly and complex experience, capped off by nutmeg notes that linger on the finish.

Toast with apricot jam comes first to mind in this nicely balanced white that begins in richness and evolves in the glass to offer a freshness of lime zest and grapefruit, the minerality well-defined.

They are calling 2013 an 'epic' year in Napa leading to an early harvest and perfect fruit. Look for a polished and sophisticated nose of full cream, fragrant sandalwood, roasted pear and custard. On the palate this Carneros chardonnay displays fine cloves, lemon curd and a fresh red apple acidity that keeps it linear and long. Ripe and rich, pour this concentrated chardonnay now with lobster or crab dishes, or let it rest in your cellar three to five years. An impressive effort and one for collectors. The fruit is whole- cluster pressed before the wine goes through a long, slow, cool native-yeast fermentation in 100 percent Burgundian-style barrels of which 61 percent are new. Battonage was done twice a week adding a quiet creaminess. After blending the wine spends thirteen months on its lees in neutral barrels. Good value. (Anthony Gismondi and Treve Ring).

Rich, ripe and polished, this full bodied Carneros chardonnay opens with subtle toast, lemon curd, cream and pear butter. The creamy palate expands to fill the mouth, with ample toast, lemon, heavy cream, hazelnut, lees and lemon pith piquancy to balance the heady fruit. Generous and quite lengthy, though the barrel use overpowers fruit at present, and the heat burns a bit more than 13.5 percent alcohol suggests. I would put down for two more years for maximum seamlessness, but drinking beautifully now with lobster or buttery crab dishes. (Treve Ring).