2016 The Hilt Chardonnay Old Guard
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Tasting notes
Tasting notes
Score 95/100 · Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Chardonnay Old Guard comes from the oldest vines of the estate and is brought up all in older oak. It offers an almost Alsatian Riesling-like minerality and green citrus streak, with more orchard fruits, white flowers, and classic salinity coming through with time in the glass. Deep, rich, and beautifully textured on the palate, it has vibrant acidity, plenty of density and mid-palate oomph, and a great finish. It too will keep for a decade or more, and I suspect it will be even better with a year or two in bottle.
Critic scores
Critic scores
95
95/100
Jeb Dunnuck
About the producer
The Hilt
The Hilt is the Santa Rita Hills project owned by sports and property mogul billionaire Stan Kroenke, who also owns Screaming Eagle in Napa Valley and the Jonata estate in the California’s Ballard Canyon AVA.