Brewer-Clifton Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay 2022

95 points                                                             New limited Chardonnay release from the famed Brewer-Clifton label in Santa Barbara!  The wines of Brewer-Clifton represent the essence of the best vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills area and focus on the production of single vineyard-designated Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from carefully selected vineyards in the SRH appellation. 96 Points Jeb Dunnuck: "One of the great values out there, Ripe orchard fruits, butted lemon, crushed stone, and salty, marine-influence notes all emerge from the Brewer-Clifton Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills, a concentrated, medium to full-bodied Chardonnay with a liquid rock-like sense of minerality, beautiful mid-palate density, and a great finish. You should never underestimate these appellation releases from Greg Brewer. This is an insane value in top Chardonnay from California....As usual with Greg’s wines, these wines are not destemmed and are brought up all in neutral barrels. Most of the Chardonnays check in around 14% alcohol, with the Pinot Noirs between 14%-14.5%, and they all have singular characters as well as a decade of longevity at a minimum. You’ll be hard pressed to find a better lineup of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from anyone in California. As readers will know, the Brewer-Clifton wines see no new oak at all. "I want all the expression and the decadence to come from the outside, so I use very old barrels and no stirring for Chardonnay," Greg explains. "Chardonnay is whole-cluster pressed, and the Pinot Noirs are whole-cluster fermented, from 70% to 100% for the single-vineyard designates. For me, stems are like a corset. We have so much fruit out here. I’ve spent 25 years working with stems as a means of framing and corseting, so we work with stems to shape and lift."  

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