Auteur 2022 Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay, Carneros ($65)

Kenneth Juhasz is making some very Burgundian-inspired, spectacular wines at Sonoma-based Auteur. This Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay is decidedly restrained, weighing in at an alleged 12.8% alcohol, with tense flint, apricot, gardenia, and jasmine aromas. Well-chilled, it would be hard to peg this as a California Chardonnay, but it doesn't come across as Burgundy, either. As it warms, a bit of subtle oak becomes apparent, but it remains bright, elegant, and tightly-wound. This is a subtle, not showy wine, but it has tons of class. It's a little like a Wong Kar-wai Film - it rewards the attentive and patient. (94 Points).

 

Calera 2021 Jensen Vineyard Pinot Noir Mt. Harlan, CA ($125)

 

 I have to hand it to Calera winemaker Mike Waller, this wine speaks softly, but exudes class. Made from an 11-acre vineyard of 4 hilltops at around 2,000 ft. elevation that Josh Jensen planted with a suitcase clone quaintly described as the "Calera selection," this wine is a California classic year in, year out. It has generous, expressive black cherry, mulberry, conifer, and oyster mushroom notes with a hint of soy sauce and limestone. The oak is so perfectly integrated that you barely notice it at all. Effortly impressive. (96 Points)

- Tim Teichgraeber