2020 Russian River Woolsey Road Chardonnay
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Tasting notes
Woolsey is planted on Huichica clay-loam over clay. This cool site was planted with old Wente cuttings taken from Platt vineyard, which had been sourced from the Hyde vineyard. Whole-cluster pressed. Juice is browned out (deliberately oxidised to help with mouthfeel and mitigate any potential issues with premox) in the press pan and tank and then lightly sulphured prior to being put into barrel. Ambient-yeast fermentation and malolactic conversion. Lees-stirring occurs every two weeks while the wine is going through malolactic conversion. Aged 20 months in 20% new French oak barrels. Medium lemon in colour. Lemon and orange blossom, lemon curd, lemon zest and a bit of sweet herb – tarragon and marjoram. Elevated, mouth-watering acidity on the palate. Toasty, leesy nature to the finish. Medium weight. (SCJ)
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2020 Chardonnay Woolsey Road Vineyard is a soft, pleasant wine. Orchard fruit, lime, mint and white flowers are nicely lifted. The 2020 is a bit lacking in depth, but then again this is 2020. On a positive note, there are no hard edges or awkward contours here.
From the old Wente clone, the 2020 Chardonnay Woolsey Road Vineyard has a soft floral perfume of chamomile and takes on ripe aromas of yellow pear, golden fruits, and cantaloupe. Full-bodied, it has wonderful intensity on the palate, with notes of ripe apricot and fresh flowers as well as a great chalky texture and a savory finish. It’s a great wine in the lineup to drink over the next 10 or more years. Founded in 1996 by David and Carla Ramey, the Rameys are continuing to produce benchmark wines, while raising the bar for what Sonoma can achieve. In 2022, the Healdsburg-based winery was officially handed over to their children, Claire and Alan, who now share responsibility as co-presidents. During my tasting with Dave, Claire, and Alan, they arranged several side-by-side comparisons with reference point wines from other wine regions. The highlight of these comparisons came when I tasted the 2020 Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard alongside the Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey 2020 Saint-Aubin Premier Cru En Remilly Hommage A Marguerite (94 points), as well as the Domaine Michelot 2020 Meursault Premier Cru Perrieres (92 points). While the Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey was wonderfully impressive and textural, the Hyde had fantastic purity and length by comparison. The Domaine Michelot has the structure to have some longevity but felt a touch weedy, which masked its otherwise purer characteristics of green apple, citrus, and toast. It fell short compared to the Hyde and the Saint-Aubin, which was surprising considering the pedigree of this Premiere Cru site from Meursault. The overarching theme across the tasting was the longevity and balanced nature of the wines from Ramey, which comes as less and less of a shock to me as I get to know their wines more intimately. Though I personally have an affinity for the whites, these wines offer tremendous value with age-worthiness across the portfolio.
The 2020 Chardonnay Woolsey Road Vineyard was harvested on August 17th before the wildfire smoke arrived, and with its pure, mineral-driven expression, it's worth cellaring for several years. The nose opens with iodine and nori tones that give way to pretty scents of panna cotta, spring honey and lilac. The medium-bodied palate is buzzing with shimmery acidity that enlivens its perfumed fruit, and it has a long, saline-driven finish.