2022 Bouchaine Estate Chardonnay

When the weather heats up, all thoughts turn to refreshing white wines, preferably sipped al fresco swinging in a hammock or at least basking in the comfort of A/C.

Napa’s Bouchaine Vineyards has got you covered with its 2022 Estate Chardonnay ($40).

This blend, of which I received a sample, is actually crafted from more than a dozen different Chardonnay wines produced from the winery’s estate blocks that were originally planted in 1984. As such, the final wine is the culmination of the marriage of different yeasts, along with fermentation in stainless steel tanks, as well as French oak barrels of different ages and toasts.

If you’re not the biggest fan of buttery, oaky or heavy-bodied Chardonnays, this one is for you. A golden straw color, it opens up on the nose with lime and apple aromas, and then fills the palate with green apple and lemon curd. It has an unexpected through line of acidity that makes it quite refreshing.

It also makes it easy to pair with summer foods such as grilled chicken, grilled shrimp, and pork kebabs.

With vines planted as far back as the 1880s, Bouchaine Vineyards is the oldest continuously operating winery in the Carneros region in the southern end of the Napa Valley. That was when a settler named Boon Fly (yes, that was his name) came out from Missouri to plant fruit trees and grapes here. Italian winemaker Johnny Garetto then bought the land in 1927 to farm it, before selling it to Beringer in 1961.

Husband and wife, Gerret and Tatiana Copeland bought the property, which had been used for storage for decades, as well as surrounding lands to build their family-owned winery using sustainable practices.

Find the Chardonnay for $70 at the winery, and $36 at Wine.com.

Cheers: The Copelands have quite the lineage. Tatiana’s mother’s uncle was none other than legendary composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. Gerret is a member of the Du Pont family. In fact, his father was the 11th president of the the multinational chemical corporation that bears that name.

2023 Larkmead Chenin Blanc

If Chenin Blanc isn’t a wine prominently on your radar, it should be pronto.

Complex, versatile for pairing, and high in acid, it’s a white wine that really shines in summer.

Lucky for us, one of the oldest family-owned wineries in the Napa Valley recently released its first Chenin Blanc, too. Calistoga’s Larkmead Vineyards, originally founded in 1895, has been owned by the Solari family for three generations. Its 115-acre vineyard is certified organic, too.

It debuted its 2023 Chenin Blanc made with grapes harvested from its Research Block, three acres planted with different grape varieties to study their blending capabilities, especially from climate changes.

I had a chance to try a sample bottle of this elegant wine that tastes of bright green apple, pear, and lemon meringue pie that’s balanced by a hint of minerality. There’s lively acidity, too, making it a go-to for many summer foods, including oysters on the half shell, grilled fish, green salads, and spicy Thai, Sichuan or Indian dishes.

The only downside? With only about 100 cases produced, the Chenin Blanc ($75) is available only to Larkmead’s wine club members.

Cheers: On the upside, the winery’s wine club has three levels for joining, the smallest of which commits you to six bottles a year, with shipments that are fully customizable so that you get the wines that you prefer. You also receive complimentary tickets to winery events, as well as two complimentary estate tastings per year at the contemporary California farmhouse-like winery, designed by the late-great Wine Country architect Howard Backen.