The 2016 Alesia Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains is superb, unfurling in the glass with notes of fresh pear, preserved citrus, lemon oil and a light framing of smoky reduction. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied...
The 2016 Alesia Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains is superb, unfurling in the glass with notes of fresh pear, preserved citrus, lemon oil and a light framing of smoky reduction. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, concentrated and tensile, built around a racy line of acidity and concluding with a saline finish that's almost searingly stony. This represents a notable change of pace after the more rounded, giving Anderson Valley Alesia bottling and marks this out as one of the keenest values in the Rhys portfolio. Follow it for a decade, perhaps more.- WK