Ramey Wine Cellars’ 2023 Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard is a single-vineyard bottling from Hyde Vineyard in Los Carneros (Napa County), a cool, marine-influenced site known for producing concentrated Chardonnay. The wine is 100% Chardonnay and is made in a deliberately Burgundian-leaning style: whole-cluster pressed fruit, native-yeast fermentation in barrel, full malolactic fermentation, and extended élevage—about 20 months in French oak, roughly 20% new—before bottling unfiltered (after traditional fining for clarity). The winery reports harvest in two passes on September 25 and October 5, 2023, at about 22.6° Brix. Production was limited, with Wine Spectator noting “1,075 cases made.”
Critical reception is notably strong, led by an excellent 99-point review from JamesSuckling.com. Executive Editor Jim Gordon calls it “so well layered, delicious and vibrant,” highlighting “lemon curd, flint and baking spices,” and emphasizing that “while generous and full-flavored, it also retains great balance, minerality and a slight sense of restraint in the vivid acidity.” He suggests it’s “drinkable now and best from 2030.”
Other reviewers reinforce the wine’s combination of richness and lift. Erin Brooks at Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate (95 points) describes an “elegant and expressive” Chardonnay with quince and white peach, plus “wafts of matchstick… Greek yogurt and crème brûlée,” with a palate “bursting with concentrated, nuanced flavors” and “a very long, elegant finish.” Antonio Galloni of Vinous (95) focuses on finesse, calling it “classy, elegant and polished,” with “orchard fruit, lemon confit, marzipan, and white flowers,” and labels it “an especially refined rendition of Hyde.”
Wine Spectator (94) finds it initially “quiet and tight,” then opening to mango, guava, and green-apple notes, finishing “fresh” and “persistent,” with a drink window through 2039. Jeb Dunnuck (95), via Audrey Frick, underscores “full-bodied richness without heaviness,” pointing to apricot tones, structure, and length. Overall, the 2023 reads as a high-definition Carneros Chardonnay built for both near-term appeal and extended aging.
