2021 DuMol "Isobel - Charles Heintz Vineyard" Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

The 2021 Chardonnay Charles Heintz Vineyard Isobel is aged in 350-500 liter low-toast barrels, 25% of them new. After a swirl or two, notes of fresh nectarines, mandarin peel, and grapefruit emerge, leading to touches of honeysuckle, marzipan, and baking bread. The medium-bodied palate delivers electric-charged stone fruit and citrus flavors with a racy backbone and satiny texture, finishing long and zesty. The vineyard was planted in 1982, and this is DuMOL's 20th vintage from here: "This is possibly the finest vintage we've made from here," said winemaker, Andy Smith. "We're the only winery that gets grapes from both blocks/soil types (clay & sand)."

Back in mid-September I was lucky enough to spend the best part of a day with the team at DuMOL out in the Russian River. We walked a number of vineyards, kicked the dirt, sampled fruit, and I even jumped on the sorting table to help process the first few tons of Estate Pinot Noir that was rolling into the winery that morning. I was also treated to the full lineup of spectacular 2021 single vineyard releases. The entire range is phenomenal. DuMOL are hands down making some of the greatest wines anywhere in California, and their Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays rival the finest Burgundies I've ever tasted. The 2021 Isobel from Charles Heintz Vineyard was a big standout in the lineup. Of course I assumed that with the monster scores (98WA / 98TWI / 97JS / 95-97VN) and historically low yields of fruit, that we would only get a handful of bottles. However, when our allocation arrived last week I was excited that my hours of fruit sorting and grape sampling had been rewarded with enough wine we could actually offer out to a small portion of our mailing list! It's still not very much wine is the grand scheme of things, but to even be able to get your hands on a wine with this level of critical acclaim and pedigree is increasing difficult! The wine truly captures the magic of this cold, heavily fog influenced site. Sitting just east of the town of Occidental, surrounded by coastal forest, the Chardonnay fruit here captures the crystaline nature of the cool sunshine, and salty ocean air. Tiny yields from the old vines, "moondust" Goldridge soils and meticulous farming give Heintz a unique flavor profile of golden exotic fruit with piquant acidity and incredible persistence on the palate. After decades of working with the site, no one captures its essence more brilliantly than winemaker Andy Smith. Get some of this in your cellar and enjoy over the next 15 years.