2021 Littorai Chardonnay Charles Heintz Vineyard
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Tasting notes
I first tasted the 2021 Chardonnay Charles Heintz Vineyard in early 2023, and although it's closed just a touch during its first year in bottle, it's just as impressive. From vines planted in 1983, it has a singular perfume of saline, lime leaves, meringue and white peach. The light-bodied palate has a silky texture, balancing highly concentrated, perfumed fruit with firm acidity, and it has a long, delicate finish. 290 cases were made.
Critic scores
Jancis Robinson MW
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Chardonnay Charles Heintz Vineyard is a super-classic wine off this site. Hints of tropical fruit, mint, pineapple, apricot and dried pear convey the essence of Charles Heintz. The 2021 is exquisitely beautiful, finishing oily and rich but not at all heavy.
Pale lemon with a bit of green. A lot riper on the nose than the Mays Canyon – sweet herb, ripe melon and yellow peach. Light aroma of vanilla and toast. Huge impact on the palate, with intense, high acidity that drives through to the finish. Fleshier than the Mays, with excellent balance. Broader mouthfeel, with more stone fruit and richness. (SCJ)
The 2021 Chardonnay Charles Heintz Vineyard is quite shy, but it was also racked just two weeks before this tasting. Heintz Chardonnays often have very specific textural signatures that aren't evident in the 2021 yet. I imagine a clearer picture will emerge from bottle. Even in this reticent state, the Heintz Chardonnay is gorgeous. I think there is more wine here, though.
About the producer
Littorai stands as one of California’s most quietly influential estates, defined by organic and biodynamic farming, site transparency, and a restrained, Burgundian sensibility.