Chardonnays: The Wimp Factor

By almost any standard, the 1990 Chardonnay from Chappellet Vineyard is an excellent wine. Made in the creamy-citrus-y style, it has a touch of oak and a long, complex finish. It’s soft and approachable. At $15 it isn’t even a bad buy.

Still, I consider it an utter failure.

Let me explain. For 25 years, Donn and Molly Chappellet have made a rigidly austere Chardonnay that, like some of the great wines in California history (Stony Hill and Trefethen, to name just two) age beautifully. I always loved the reticence of Chappellet Chardonnay. Disdaining the cheap allure of some Chardonnays, it coyly yielded its charms only when coaxed.

But it didn’t sell. Well, it sold OK, but slowly, which rankled the owners. This splendid wine was really understood only by those preferring true subtlety.

And in an age when so many Chardonnays are made sweet enough to serve with dessert, so oaky they taste more like grape stakes than grapes, or with enough alcohol to please a snake-oil salesman, Chappellet Chardonnay was an anomaly. Though it was out of favor with many Americans, I and a number of others loved it.

When I tried the new 1990 wine, I nearly choked. It was tasty, but young Chappellet Chardonnay isn’t supposed to be tasty. It’s supposed to be lean, hard and brittle, a wine with great delicacy.

“People were simply not willing to accept a wine made in that fashion,” says the new winemaker, Philip Coralo-Titus, who made this wine, his first after replacing Cathy Corison as winemaker.

He calls the wine “a new set of clothes on the same person,” but I don’t agree. As well made as the wine is, this is merely a caricature, and I long for the tart, grapefruity austerity of the old Chappellet--a wine that would dance on the tongue, displaying the acidity that suited delicate dishes so well. As good as this wine is, it is simply another good Chardonnay--and it’s not as if there isn’t a lot of good Chardonnay out there.

For example, Voss, a brand you’ve never heard of before (the name comes from the hero in an Australian novel), has a fresh, lean, delicate, faintly tropical fruit-scented 1991 Chardonnay with plenty of flavor. There is more citrus than pineapple here, and an attractive fullness in taste combined with a crisp finish.

A project of Hill-Smith Estate of Australia, the wine is made with Napa Valley and Carneros grapes and made at . . . Chappellet. Winemaker for the project is Simon Adams, an Australian associated with the large Hill-Smith operation at Yalumba (in Australia), but Coralo-Titus helped in the winemaking.

The Voss wine was aged in specially crafted barrels made from American-grown oak. These barrels cost less than half as much as those made of French oak, which are selling for $600 each. This, says Robert Hill-Smith, permits the project to exist.

And there’s another Chardonnay you should take a look at: Chateau Woltner’s 1991 “Howell Mountain.” The wine offers citrus and melon flavors and rich texture but a delicate, crisp finish. Considering the high prices of most of Chateau Woltner wines, the $12 tag looks like an error. What it represents is an inexpensive way to discover the Woltner style at a fraction of the price of the vineyard-designated wines.

All of the grapes are grown on the estate, but from parcels that yielded too much fruit as well as from younger vines. Winemaker Ted Lemon admits that the way he makes Chardonnay is not the best way to make money. “It’s very difficult to sell,” he says. “But we have had some success.”

And there’s good news: Lemon made 5,000 cases of this wine, and it’s discounted in some places to less than $10.

Wine of the Week

1991 J. Fritz Winery Chardonnay ($9.50) --This wine has everything, starting with a classic citrus-y/grapefruity nose, carrying through to a tart, complex finish with ample fruit and depth. The wine is tart enough to allow it to match with fine food, yet generous enough for sipping as an aperitif. The Fritz winery is at the northern edge of Sonoma County, near Cloverdale. Winemaker David Hastings has long made good-value wines, and this is a brilliant example. Occasionally discounted, this wine is a real bargain.

Tasting Notes

There are many moderately-priced Chardonnays on the market these days; here are some of the more impressive ones.

1991 Seghesio Winery, Sonoma County ($9)--Strikingly fruity; quite a bit softer than the Fritz. This wine just won a gold medal at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair.

1991 Chateau Souverain, Sonoma County ($9.85)--Fresh, lively fruit aromas and flavors.

1991 Sonoma Creek Winery, Carneros ($10)--Fresh-fruit flavors, delicate finish.

1990 J. Pedroncelli Winery ($9.50)--Good fruit and intensity. Lighter in style than some but with superb balance.

1991 Chateau DeBaun ($10)--Faintly herbal and spiced, like limes instead of lemons, with a melon-y note and a crisp finish. Wonderful fruit qualities, a great successor to DeBaun’s wonderful 1990.