Wine Advisor
Ramey, Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay 2012
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(14.5% alcohol; 30% new oak): Pale, bright yellow. Discreet scents of lemon, clove and minerals. Slightly richer in the mouth than the 2013 but also comes across as bone-dry, with the lemon curd and mineral flavors displaying lovely precision and subtle oakiness. An impeccably balanced Chardonnay but today the wine's fruit is quite restrained. This youthfully imploded Chardonnay will need a few more years in bottle to approach its peak and should also age very well.
About the Producer
Ramey Wine Cellars makes wines that stand among the best in the world. They produce Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah from top vineyards in Sonoma and Napa. David and Carla Ramey founded the winery in 1996. David is among a distinguished group of pioneering American vintners who revolutionized modern-day winemaking and elevated California to the forefront of the international wine community. And forged a new California winemaking style that paired old-world techniques with some of the most premier fruit of Sonoma and Napa. Some of his contributions to modern-day winemaking include pioneering whole-cluster pressing of white grapes; the use of oxidized juice in white winemaking; sur lies ageing of white wines in barrel; malolactic fermentation of Chardonnay; native yeast fermentations; and bottling without filtration. He has been making wine since the 1970s. David and Carla Ramey were married in Bordeaux in 1989 while working harvest at Château Pétrus. Together, they founded Ramey Wine Cellars with the vision of crafting classically styled and balanced wines that age beautifully. The Ramey family has long excelled at collaborating with other multigenerational winegrowers to make single vineyard wines and blends that showcase their sites' defining characteristics. Westside Farms, their 75-acre Estate vineyard, has been used as farmland since the middle 1800s. The vines at Westside Farms run along the banks of the Russian River. Wine Spectator has described Westside Farms’ location as “hallowed ground” for lovers of well-structured Chardonnays. Ramey are proud to continue this long history of agriculture.
