2020 Diatom Santa Barbara County Chardonnay
SKU #1555790
96 points
Vinous
The 2020 Chardonnay (Santa Barbara County) is outrageously beautiful. In fact, it is one of the very finest wines I have ever tasted from Greg Brewer. Rich and textured in the glass, with plenty of bright acids, the 2020 is wonderfully alive. Greg Brewer has done a tremendous job in crafting a Chardonnay that is both texturally deep and intense. In 2020, facing a lack of visibility in the market because of COVID-19, Brewer-Clifton bottled just a fraction of their appellation Chardonnay, freeing up a number of top sites that Greg Brewer was able to access for Diatom. The 2020 is simply magnificent. (AG)
(10/2021)
95 points
Wine Enthusiast
Fresh melon, Key lime and celery aromas make for a unique and refreshing nose in this tantalizing wine by Greg Brewer. The wine zips across the palate with vibrant, titillating acidity, carrying flavors of sea shell, light herb and zesty citrus into the relentlessly grippy finish. *Editors’ Choice* (MK)
(8/2021)
93 points
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Chardonnay Santa Barbara County comes from the talented Greg Brewer, and it's been an incredible value in every vintage I've been lucky enough to taste. Revealing a medium to lighter gold hue, it's medium-bodied and juicy, with a lively, up-front nose of ripe Meyer lemon, tangerine, honeysuckle, and exotic white flowers. This pure, elegant Chardonnay brings beautiful fruit and texture, has plenty of acidity, and a great finish.
(8/2021)
K&L Notes
The 2020 offering from Diatom bears the broader Santa Barbara County AVA designation. However, the juice in the bottle is top-notch single vineyard quality, coming from 3D Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills and Katherine's Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley. In classic Greg Brewer style, the wine derives its power from low yields and perfectly ripe fruit, vinified without the use of oak, entirely fermented and aged in stainless steel, with no malolactic fermentation.