Ojai Chardonnay Solomon Hills Vineyard 2018

One American winemaker that I’ve always admired whose Chardonnays are cut from the French cloth is Adam Tolmach at Ojai. I’ve known Adam and his Assistant Winemaker, Fabien Castel for over a decade and over that time I’ve tried a lot of their wines. The Chardonnays are always impeccably balanced, with tremendous acidity and minerality that I love. He’s a boundary pusher, constantly tinkering, never following rules and experimenting with sugars, acidity, pick dates, barrels and everything else under the sun.

The 2018 edition from the wonderful Solomon Hills Vineyard in Santa Barbara is exceptional.  The fruit in this Chard is impeccable. It’s clean, smooth and absolutely bristling with energy. Mandarin oranges, peaches, and green apple with a hint of vanilla yogurt on the wonderfully fresh and lingering finish.

“My favorite of the trio, the 2018 Chardonnay Solomon Hills Vineyard comes from a great site located just to the west of Bien Nacido and was raised mostly in neutral barrels. Richer orchard fruits, orange blossom, spice, crushed rocks, and brioche notes define the bouquet of this classic Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay, which offers bright acidity and good concentration. It’s certainly the richest of the three Chardonnays and is going to evolve for at least 7-8 years.”   -96 pts, Jeb Dunnuck