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Price: $37.00 20% Discount to Wine
Club Members
TECHNICAL DATA:
Appellation: Alexander Valley
Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Harvest Dates: September 1 - 11, 2004
Brix at Harvest: 24.4 (average)
Cooperage: Fermented and aged in 100% French oak 40% new
Fermentation: 100% barrel and malolactic
Production: 2,704 cases
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2004 ALEXANDER VALLEY
CHARDONNAY
Estate Grown
The
season began a week early with record 90-degree
temperatures, and with Chardonnay budding March 7th.
Record 100-degree temperatures in late April further
accelerated the seasonal clock, producing a good, but
short, bloom period. The overall crop was low partly due
to below-normal 2003 spring temperatures. May and June
was mild to warm, close to normal. Irrigation began a
bit earlier than the norm. While July was relatively
cool, the vines remained one or two weeks ahead of
schedule. Chardonnay harvest began on September 1st, and
a heat spell the first week of the month pushed overall
harvest forward.
| — Jim Young,
Robert Young Estate Winery |
Robert Young Estate Winery Chardonnay is made
predominantly from Robert Young clone #17, a vine of
French Burgundy descent that was developed at the Young
Family Vineyard in Alexander Valley, California. Clone
#17 is reputed to produce some of the most distinctive
Chardonnay fruit in the world. The 2004 Chardonnay went
through primary and full malolactic fermentation and was
aged sur lies (on its sediments) for 10 months. After
the initial ageing stage, the wine was racked off its
sediments and returned to the barrel in the winery’s
caves for another five months.
WINEMAKER TASTING NOTES
“A full-bodied and intense Chardonnay, with rich aromas
of guava, melon, nectarine, apple, spice, honey, and
pineapple. Creamy layers of fruit backed by toasty
French oak provide for a deep and complex wine. A long,
lingering finish tops off the Robert Young Estate Winery
Chardonnay. This wine can be enjoyed with or without
food.”
REVIEWS & AWARDS FOR ALEXANDER VALLEY CHARDONNAY
2004 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Spectator, April 30, 2005, Rating: 92 points.
“92, Robert Young Chardonnay Alexander Valley 2004 $37.
Ripe, with sweet fig, tangerine and melon flavors that
are elegant and creamy. Neatly tapered, long and smooth
on the finish, ending with a dash of hazelnut.
Delicious. Drink now through 2010. 2,704 cases made.”
–JL. Wine Spectator Magazine, April 30th, 2007
2003 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
93 points, 2 “puffs,” Connoisseurs’ Guide, October 2005
Leading with rich aromas of sweet cream, vanilla and
optimally ripened apples, this impressively filled
offering fans out on the palate with luscious flavors
that build on the richness and very deep fruit of the
nose. Although it is moderately full-bodied and
wonderfully smooth in texture, it is also quite lively
and keenly balanced throughout its considerable length.
2002 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Spectator, April 30, 2005, Rating: 92 points.
‘Rich and creamy, with tiers of buttery pear, hazelnut,
marshmallow, anise and smoke, it shows off the ripeness
of the fruit and pretty oak.
Drink now through 2008. 1,240 cases made.’ James Laube”
2002 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Advocate #157, February 2005.
Robert Young Estate Winery 2002 Chardonnay, Rating: 92
points.
“A beautiful nose of white currants, peaches, and pears
is followed by a medium to full-bodied Chardonnay
revealing loads of flavor, a beautiful texture, and a
honeyed complexity.” –Robert Parker
2001 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Spectator ~ October 2003
93 Points A delicious Chardonnay the mixes ripe,
vibrant, creamy pear, fig, honeysuckle and nectarine
flavors with a light dash of toasty oak that adds a
touch of hazelnut.
2000 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Enthusiast ~ Best of 2001
Editors Choice & Best White Wine Of The Year
96 Points The long anticipated wine from longtime
grower-turned vintner swings for the fences. Begins with
fascinating, complex aromas - highlighted by lees,
pineapple, cinnamon, smoke and white chocolate - and
dazzles with its sheer opulence. Everything come
together in pinpointing harmony, right down to the
mind-bogglingly beautiful finish.
Wine Country This Week - November 2002
94 Points A marvelous balanced wine with ripe apple and
pear fruit on the opening, leading to a creamy center
and a long refreshing finish. One of the best California
Chardonnays I've tasted on a while - Larry Walker
Wine Spectator ~ June 2002
89 Points A bold, rich and complex wine, with tiers of
ripe pear, spice, fig and a touch of bubble gum flavor.
Light oak adds a subtle flavor dimension of complexity -
J.L.
Sante Magazine ~ June 2003
Medium bodied and clean with vibrant fruit, ripe peach
unsalted butter, orange creme brulee, sandlewood, and
notes of roasted coffee bean; long tart finish
1999 Alexander Valley Chardonnay
Wine Spectator ~ March 2001
92 Points Ultraripe, rich and creamy, with exotic
tropical fruit flavors of fig, guava, pineapple and pear
accented by smoky, toasted oak flavors that linger, -
J.L.
Robert Young Estate Winery phone: 707 431-4811 fax: 707 431-4812 email:
info@ryew.com |
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