Grapelive Wine of the Week

By Kerry Winslow

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2009 Wren Hop Chardonnay “Shipwreck Savior” Sonoma Coast.
This Chard has vibrant and lush fruit with sweet citrus flowers, pear and pineapple with baked apple and bioche. This wine is deeply flavored, concentrated and vivid with flashes of mineral and lemon curd and finishes long with hints of hazelnut, smoke and Vanilla. Wren is a new label and winery and star winemaker Russell Bevan is crafting the wines here, with two Pinot Noirs and this Chardonnay being the first ever releases. I must admit there is a lot of buzz about these wines, especially after Robert Parker gave the two Pinots big ratings, so I had heard of them, but the Chardonnay had not been mentioned. While the Wren Hop Vineyards wines are uber California in style and there may be a few out there that will shy away from them, they are of the highest quality and very showy. ($42 Est.)

93 Points, grapelive

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