Tag Archives: Larkmead Vineyards

Summer Sips

Posted on by Leave a comment
A Sauvignon Blanc that drinks like a Chardonnay.
A Sauvignon Blanc that drinks like a Chardonnay.

2023 Larkmead Lillie Napa Valley Estate Sauvignon Blanc

Summer heat may beg for chilled wines. But that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice oomph and lush body.

Not when you uncork a bottle of the 2023 Larkmead Lillie Napa Valley Estate Sauvignon Blanc, of which I received a sample.

It’s 100 percent Sauvignon Blanc but made in a Bordeaux-style, meaning it’s not only rich tasting but full-bodied.

Fermented in new oak barrels, this isn’t your racy New Zealand-style Sauvignon Blanc with searing acidity. Instead, this is a wine that lushly fragrant with grapefruit and white flowers that tastes of lemon curd, milk bread,, and melon, and boasts a flinty quality. Highly regarded, it’s been described by others as a “Sauvignon Blanc that drinks like a Chardonnay.” Though, thankfully, without being achingly oaky.

Read more

Summer Sips

Posted on by Leave a comment
A Chardonnay that drinks light with plenty of acidity.
A Chardonnay that drinks light with plenty of acidity.

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.

Read more