2006 Kongsgaard Chardonnay

(bottled in June of 2008) More exotic and more tropical on the nose than the 2007, hinting at butterscotch and honeyed high tones. Fat and sweet, but with a slightly bitter edge to its honeyed flavor. Less fleshy and fruity than the 2007, and currently conveying less minerality too. Not showing the fruit it displayed from barrel a year ago: is this in a dumb stage?

The 2006 Chardonnay reveals brawny orange marmalade, white peach, and popcorn notes with notions of oak and damp earth in the background. Drink it over the next several years as I am suspect of the aging potential of these Chardonnays. The idiosyncratic, but brilliant producer of Chardonnay, Roussanne/Viognier, Syrah, and more recently, Cabernet Sauvignon, John Kongsgaard, and his low-tech, artisinal winemaking style have had an enormous influence on many top northern California winemakers. It’s always a treat to taste with him. All his wines are limited in quantity as the family’s vineyard in Coombsville is only 9 acres, so he draws fruit from special plots in the Hudson Vineyard for his Syrah, and more recently from some of David Abreu’s vineyards for his 350-case cuvee of Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2006 Chardonnays were underperforming compared to my notes from last year. This trend is apparent in many producers’ Chardonnays in this vintage. The exuberant fruit that was noticeable out of barrel seems to have become more reserved. Nevertheless, these are still top-notch Chardonnays, just not as brilliant as I first thought. Normally, Kongsgaard’s Chardonnays are better from bottle than from barrel. Kongsgaard employs no additives, proteins, or enzymes, ferments his Syrah in pungeons with indigenous yeasts, and does not sulphur the wine until long after malolactic is completed. In the huge Hudson Vineyard, he has an unusual block of vines planted totally in volcanic soils and shale. This is the source for his Syrah, one of the most provocative and individualistic Syrahs made in California Fax (707) 963-4512

(from Kongsgaard's "home" vineyard just east of the town of Napa, plus Hyde and Hudson fruit) Pale, bright yellow. Aromas of lemon curd, minerals and crushed stone, lifted by citrus zest. Intensely flavored but youthfully austere, with brisk acid giving grip and shape to the complex notes of spices, flowers, herbs and minerals. This one has a lower pH than the '05, noted Kongsgaard, who told me that his 2006 chardonnays took a good three to four months to ferment their sugars (his new cellar maintains a consistent temperature of 58o