White Wine Reviews

I drank these 26 wines and tasted apple, apricot, bright, floral, fruity, lemon, minerality, peach, pear, slightly sweet. The wines are aged, biodynamic, cru, food friendly, food-friendly, grand cru, my favorites, small production, sur lies, whole cluster and came from a variety of sources, including wine clubs, wineries, and wine stores.

Wine reviews by: Jessyca Frederick

Chardonnay, Sonoma County

2020 Long Street Winery Chardonnay, Sonoma County

A nice, solid Chardonnay. Well-balanced, structured but not oaky, round but not buttery, not too much alcohol, not too much acid.

Tasting notes: balanced, white fruit

Rustenberg Chenin Blanc

2021 Rustenberg Wines Rustenberg Chenin Blanc

A food-friendly white wine featuring typical Chenin Blanc floral and stone fruit flavors, but in a more subdued presentation (as compared with California).

Tasting notes: bright, apple, peach, floral, slightly sweet

Talinay Chardonnay

2020 Tabalí Talinay Chardonnay

A Chablis-style Chardonnay characterized by mineral-driven, saline, lemony citrus bursts, bracing acidity, and a light body from limestone soils near the coast in Chile.

Tasting notes: bright, lemon, minerality

La Douleur Exquise

2020 Penrose Hill Firstleaf La Douleur Exquise

A touch sweet, more so than I’m used to, for a Grenache Blanc, but it had excellent acidity to balance the sugar, making it very approachable and food friendly.

Tasting notes: slightly sweet, bright, food friendly

Savary Chablis

2018 Francine et Olivier Savary Savary Chablis

This Chablis was on point with scents of apple, chalk, and a fresh energy that delivered subtle pear notes.

Tasting notes: apple, chalk, pear, bright

Riesling Geisberg

2014 Kuentz-Bas Riesling Geisberg

This 2014 riesling was dry, but with a hint of sweetness in the finish. I had not tasted an aged riesling before and was enamored with the complexity, richness, and structure (and really wished I had another bottle).

Tasting notes: lemon, pear, slightly sweet, aromatic

Patelin de Tablas Blanc

2021 Tablas Creek Vineyards Patelin de Tablas Blanc

I smelled white fruit and enjoyed an appley mid-palate (the Grenache Blanc), a hint of Meyer lemon, and a nice minerality supported by mild acidity.

Tasting notes: apple, low acid, mineral

Vogelzang Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc

2018 Dragonette Cellars Vogelzang Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc

It is a medium-bodied, medium-acidity Sauv Blanc with Meyer lemon and grapefruit on the palate, more muted butterscotch than the nose, and at five years old, just a hint of oak.

Tasting notes: citrus, butterscotch, oak, tropical fruit

Chenin Blanc

2018 Lone Madrone Chenin Blanc

With 4+ years of age on it, this Chenin was not especially fruity, but still aromatic and honeyed. The acidity and body were beautiful, offering interesting textures as the wine moved across my palate.

Tasting notes: bright, honey, apple

Oveja

2018 Lone Madrone Oveja

I enjoyed: white fruit cocktail, banana, lychee, something like Petrol (from the Picpoul), and mandarin. Still food-friendly, after all those years.

Tasting notes: bright, stone fruit

Lapola

2019 Dominio do Bibei Lapola

What an interesting wine! Initial impressions of stone fruit and floral notes on the nose. The honeyed character made me think of Viognier, but it was different... “waxiness.”

Tasting notes: stone fruit, floral, aromatic, citrus, bright

Crozes-Hermitage Blanc

2021 Michelas St Jemms Crozes-Hermitage Blanc

Especially waxy when I drank it, this blend was noticeably less viscous and fruity than California versions of Rhône whites.

Tasting notes: waxy, apricot, pear

Happy Canyon Sauvignon Blanc

2019 Dragonette Cellars Happy Canyon Sauvignon Blanc

Magic in a bottle. Bright, caramel, bruléed pineapple, guava, and a viscosity that coats your tongue making it all last even longer.

Tasting notes: caramel, pineapple, creme brulée, tropical fruit

Michaud Riesling

2021 Naked Wines Michaud Riesling

This white wine tastes like most other “low alcohol” white wines — apple cider. I found it a touch sweet with no acid to balance it, and flabby. 11.9% ABV.

Tasting notes: slightly sweet, apple cider, cinnamon

Patrice Grasset Chenin Blanc

2021 Naked Wines Patrice Grasset Chenin Blanc

A more subtle Chenin Blanc than I’m used to, but it was balanced and food-friendly, and I’d drink it again.

Tasting notes: food-friendly

Derek Rohlffs Pinot Gris

2021 Naked Wines Derek Rohlffs Pinot Gris

Fruity and bright, light white wine that tasted a little bit hot to me (the taste of alcohol). As with most Naked Wines whites, a great price for an easy drinking wine.

Tasting notes: apple, baked pear, bright, lemon

Franc Dušak Viognier

2021 Naked Wines Franc Dušak Viognier

A very subtle viognier offering typical varietal flavors like jasmine and honey, but the fruit profile was apple, not the usual stone fruits like apricot.

Tasting notes: floral, honey, apple

Rick Boyer Unoaked Chardonnay

2021 Naked Wines Rick Boyer Unoaked Chardonnay

A beautiful expression of Central Coast Chardonnay which went easy on the winemaking to let the Chardonnay’s bright fruitiness shine on its own.

Tasting notes: creamy, fruity, bright

Villae (Branco)

2021 Taboadella 1255 Villae (Branco)

A food-friendly white wine (branco is white in Portuguese) was light and refreshing with flavors of stone fruit and minerality.

Tasting notes: bright, stone fruit, apricot, peach, minerality

“Special Club” White Wine Blend

2021 Martelloto Wines “Special Club” White Wine Blend

The drier, lemony flavors of the Sauvignon Blanc sort of pushed and pulled on the fruitier, more aromatic Riesling and Chenin Blanc. Lacked expected brightness.

Tasting notes: lemon, fruity

“M” Chardonnay

2021 Martelloto Wines “M” Chardonnay

Barrel fermented for eight months, this Chardonnay was not super oaky. Signature apple and pear flavors harmonized with a touch of creaminess.

Tasting notes: apple, pear, creamy, light oak

Chaleur Blanc

2020 DeLille Cellars Chaleur Blanc

What I liked was that the Semillon added a bit of a honeyed, bitterish note to counteract the Sauv Blanc’s acidic fruitiness. It reminded me of a bright Viognier or a Viognier/Roussanne blend.

Tasting notes: honey, bitter, fruity, bright

Vieilles Vignes Sancerre

2018 Roger et Didier Raimbault Vieilles Vignes Sancerre

This particular Sancerre is typical (in a good way) of what you’d expect for Sauvignon Blanc from this region — it’s fruity and bright, featuring a lemony essence on the palate with a touch of minerality.

Tasting notes: fruity, bright, lemon, minerality

Sauvignon Blanc Klassik

2020 Michi Lorenz Sauvignon Blanc Klassik

This particular Sauvignon Blanc was not super complex, but it was bright and food-friendly — a stated goal for Michi Lorenz, who wishes to make wine “not to be loud, and to fascinate people at the same time.”

Tasting notes: mineral, saline, bright

Pinot Gris Yakima Valley

2021 Camaraderie Cellars Pinot Gris Yakima Valley

This is an example of a wine that wasn’t especially distinctive, but was exactly as advertised, “Fresh, bright acidity matches aromatics of apple and pear.” Food-friendly, indeed.

Tasting notes: apple, pear, bright

Über Chard

2021 Brutocao Cellars Über Chard

A somewhat complex Chardonnay from Northern California, showcasing vanilla and caramel from the oak and stone fruit on the palate.

Tasting notes: vanilla, caramel, apricot, peach

Notice: I hold no formal wine credentials. I am a wine geek who has consumed 1000+ of bottles from 100+ different wine clubs and 1000s more bottles that didn’t come from those wine clubs. I do not accept payment for wine reviews, and I do not accept payments to influence my opinions. I happily accept free wine (and I buy wine).

Why read my wine reviews: Wine taste is subjective. What I like may not be what you like. I try to leave room for you to form your own opinions, so I don’t provide a score or a rating. I do point out wines that are an incredible value or truly not worth the money. I note flaws, wines that don’t have typicity (because this matters if you are buying wine without having tasted it yourself), when wines are out of balance, and when wines lack appropriate body.

I don’t like wasting money (or anything for that matter). I’m careful about where I spend my money and my mindset as a reviewer is to be careful about where you spend yours. I don’t believe a high price tag equals quality and I know for sure there are wines of very good quality that are also a great value.

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