FROM MY CELLAR
2006 Mayacamas Chardonnay Napa Valley – Mt. Veeder ($35 on release)
This wine is all about delicious subtlety and balance. It reveals aromas of pure lemon and a suggestion of white peach with a layer of butterscotch and a steely note. These qualities carry over in the mouth where they are joined by stony (maybe flinty) qualities and nutty notes. It’s all delivered in a structure that is firm and crisp and picks up some viscosity midpalate, but stays light on its feet.
Those of you who prefer big, buttery Chardonnays may not like this as much as I do. I like some of those wines, too. But I find this Mayacamas much more satisfying. Everything is in proportion and no quality is overbearing.
The thin, rocky volcanic soil at Mayacamas’ mountain vineyard and the comparatively mild summers and but cold winters are conducive to high acid, intensely flavored grapes. In the cellar, this wine was spared malolactic fermentation and aged six months in larged American oak, then a year in smaller French oak barrels. It is typical for Mayacamas’ Chardonnays to reach maturity at five to eight years of age. And this one seems to have hit the mark right on schedule.