American Chardonnay: The top bottles worth seeking out
The statistics don’t lie: people everywhere still love to drink Chardonnay. And across the wine-growing states of the US, you’ll find a spectacular diversity of styles. Make a beeline for more than 50 delicious picks from California and beyond.
Chardonnay’s unique appeal lies in a certain blank-canvas malleability. At its core, it’s a wine of transparency, a mirror to terroir and the brushstrokes of a winemaker’s technique. In the US, however, its hallmark style – big, buttery Californiaesque wines plump with tropical fruit and new-oak flavours – is subject to nearly as much scorn as adoration.
Yet Chardonnay is America’s most popular white wine among consumers by far, its market share exceeding 15%, according to Silicon Valley Bank’s 2023 State of the US Wine Industry report, with Pinot Grigio following at just above 8% (SipSource data to September 2022).
Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 30 top American Chardonnays
Despite its enduring popularity, the basic prototype of the American Chard historically capitalised on a cheerful yet generic expression of place and fabrication. The most commercially successful American Chardonnays are sun-soaked yet ubiquitous wines that are largely replicable wherever sufficient ripeness can be achieved. But, looking behind the shadow of America’s big-brand Chardonnay, you’ll find an entirely different landscape of diverse, impactful Chardonnay has flourished.
If it’s been a while since you’ve taken a good, long look at American Chardonnay, things will not be how they were even a decade ago. Overwhelmingly, wines are sharper these days. A few pounds lighter and less reliant on make-up, they’re digging increasingly inwards, not outwards, for inspiration. Soil and site-driven, America’s most dynamic Chardonnays are keen, often hyperspecific expressions of this country’s remarkable diversity.
Across the nation
California is still the touchstone of American Chardonnay. But it’s also home to some of the most thrillingly divergent expressions of the variety. Tasted blind, they can be enigmatic puzzles of topography, exposition, climate and soil. The electric Chardonnay coaxed from wind-blasted pockets of the Santa Rita Hills couldn’t be more different from the rich, earthen Chards of old, low-yield vines atop the Santa Cruz Mountains.
In Oregon’s Willamette Valley, a cool-climate region where the Pacific ocean tempers long, dry growing seasons and rainy winters, comparisons to Burgundy are increasingly difficult to avoid. Oregon is a hotbed for the Burgundian grape varieties and home to increasing numbers of high-profile transplants from Drouhin, Jadot, MéoCamuzet and more. ‘No one’s interested in making facsimiles of Burgundy,’ says Sashi Moorman, the California winemaker who, with business partner Raj Parr, owns and operates Evening Land Vineyards in the Eola-Amity Hills. But there’s no denying, Moorman says, that Burgundian traditions have served as a ‘north star’ in crafting complex, ageworthy, nuanced wines in Oregon.
See all 57 of Anna Lee Iijima’s American Chardonnay recommendations
Mainly grown in the desert lands east of the Cascade Mountains, Chardonnay in Washington State seemed historically poised to mimic the commercially lucrative Californian style. But a heightened awareness of Chardonnay-specific terroir along with keen restraints in winemaking yield wines of renewed balance and finesse there, too.
On the east coast, New York State, particularly the Finger Lakes, is a standout region for Chardonnay of increasing subtlety and nuance. It’s also one of the few regions remaining where physiologically ripe, flavourful Chardonnay can be produced with high natural acidity and alcohol hovering below the 13% mark, suggests winemaker Nathan Kendall, who produces Chardonnay for his Nathan K and Hickory Hollow brands.
‘The landscape for American Chardonnay is much healthier than it’s ever been’, says Dan Petroski, owner and winemaker of Massican in Napa Valley. ‘America will always have its beautifully rich, tropical wines,’ but, he says, American Chardonnay ‘is increasingly reflective of the global culture of Chardonnay’, not just the snapshot that California once defined it as.
30 top American Chardonnays to try
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00 Wines, VGW Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2019
Undoubtedly one of the best Chardonnays produced in America today, this is a gripping, textured wine with a richness of extraction offset by striking freshness....
2019
00 WinesWillamette Valley
Kistler Vineyards, Les Noisetiers Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, California, USA, 2021
Kistler is a benchmark of classic California Chard, known for opulence and power. Over the last decade, however, its wines have gained a tension, cut...
2021
Kistler VineyardsSonoma Coast
Walter Scott, Cuvée Anne Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2019
Etched with flint and smoke, this barrel selection of Walter Scott's best Chardonnay sites highlights verdant lime and yuzu flavours accented with sea sprays and...
2019
Walter ScottWillamette Valley
Evening Land, Summum Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA, 2021
Evening Land's tête de cuvée, this deeply reverberating Chardonnay is sourced from just fourteen vine rows grown on volcanic soils at the heart of the...
2021
Evening LandWillamette Valley
Hanzell Vineyards, Heritage Chardonnay, Sonoma County, Moon Mountain District, California, USA, 2021
Lusciously silky in mouthfeel, this rich, ample Chardonnay offers heaps of ripe, succulent apricot and honeydew flavours speckled with heady tones of dried thyme, sweet...
2021
Hanzell VineyardsSonoma County
Liquid Farm, White Hill Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County, Santa Rita Hills, California, USA, 2021
Delightfully plump yet pristine white peach and apricot flavours are edged by vibrant streaks of acid and steel in this beautifully balanced, succulent wine. Full-bodied...
2021
Liquid FarmSanta Barbara County
Mount Eden Vineyards, Estate Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA, 2019
Powerfully ripe yet racy and thrilling with acidity, this deeply concentrated Chardonnay exhibits a masterful balance of pure, persistent citrus and orchard fruit against a...
2019
Mount Eden VineyardsSanta Cruz Mountains
Thomas Fogarty, Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA, 2019
A deeply reverberating wine with forward, piercing yellow-peach and grapefruit flavours cut by spine-tingling lemon-lime acidity. Barrel-fermented with native yeasts and spontaneous malolactic fermentation, it's...
2019
Thomas FogartySanta Cruz Mountains
Sandhi, Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County, Santa Rita Hills, California, USA, 2021
Tasted at the beginning of 2023, a reductive quality was still obscuring bright, penetrating green apple and kiwi flavours with a smoky, earthen veil. Still,...
2021
SandhiSanta Barbara County
Failla, Olivet Ranch Chardonnay, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley, California, USA, 2020
Traces of incense and tea leaves lend a beguiling tone to honeyed apricot and yellow peach flavours here. Sourced from a site 600m above the...
2020
FaillaSonoma County
Trestle 31, Chardonnay, Finger Lakes, New York State, USA, 2020
93
Hints of blossom and freshly popped corn introduce this uniquely silken, textured expression of Finger Lakes Chardonnay. While delightfully spry in fruit profile, its crisp grapefruit and lemon flavours are licked with dabs of hazelnut and crème fraîche. A supple, mouth-clinging wine that finishes on a bristling vein of acidity.
2020
Trestle 31Finger Lakes
Lioco, Estero Chardonnay, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley, California, USA, 2020
With not a hint of fat or butter, this salt-and-lemon struck Chardonnay offers plump, pristine apricot and tangerine flavours edged with stone. A blend sourced...
2020
LiocoSonoma County
Nicolas-Jay, Affinités Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2021
Whispers of lemon curd and fresh mint soften the brace of crisp green apples and limes in this spirited, salt-licked Chardonnay produced by Jean-Nicolas Méo...
2021
Nicolas-JayWillamette Valley
Arnot-Roberts, Trout Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA, 2021
Sourced from 40-year-old heritage Wente vines planted in a forested canyon just miles from the coast, this steely, saline wine highlights a more savoury, earthen...
2021
Arnot-RobertsSanta Cruz Mountains
Ponzi Vineyards, Alloro Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Oregon, USA, 2019
The Alloro vineyard sits at a higher elevation, up to 200m and more, than Ponzi's other single vineyards featured in its Laurelwood District AVA Chardonnay...
2019
Ponzi VineyardsWillamette Valley
Lioco, Skycrest Chardonnay, Mendocino County, Anderson Valley, California, USA, 2020
Sourced from heights spanning 760m in Anderson Valley's highest-elevation site, this is a sleek yet supple, mouthwatering wine. White peach and camomile flavours are concentrated...
2020
LiocoMendocino County
Domaine Drouhin Oregon, Arthur Chardonnay, Dundee Hills, Oregon, Oregon, USA, 2021
Sourced from some of the oldest Dijon-clone stock in Oregon, this mouthwatering, voluptuous Chardonnay offers layers of fleshy white peach and Meyer-lemon flavours against a...
2021
Domaine Drouhin OregonDundee Hills, Oregon
Beaux Frères, Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2020
Rich, penetrating flavours of apricot and peach are edged with shards of nutmeg and lemon balm in this solidly structured yet poised Chardonnay. While matured...
2020
Beaux FrèresWillamette Valley
Massican, Hyde Chardonnay, Napa Valley, California, USA, 2021
An intensely floral, perfumed Chardonnay sourced from a veritable grand cru site in the historic Hyde vineyard in Carneros, established in 1979. Vinified in French...
2021
MassicanNapa Valley
Matthiasson, Linda Vista Vineyard Chardonnay, Napa Valley, California, USA, 2021
Streaks of lime and tart honeydew reverberate through this slim yet piercing, powerful Chardonnay. A blend of grapes harvested in multiple stages, fermented with native...
2021
MatthiassonNapa Valley
Ramey, Fort Ross - Seaview Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, California, USA, 2020
Sourced just two miles from the Pacific Ocean at an elevation of 340 metres, this muscular yet distinctly maritime expression of the Sonoma Coast leads...
2020
RameySonoma Coast
Bergström, Old Stones Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA, 2020
Old Stones is Bergström's accessibly priced younger sibling to its flagship Sigrid. It's a voluminous supple wine enriched by streaks of sweet custard. Still, its...
2020
BergströmWillamette Valley
Forge Cellars, Caywood Chardonnay, Finger Lakes, New York State, USA, 2021
A crush of stone and earth on the nose leads to zesty lemon, lime and white grapefruit flavours in this vibrantly honed expression of Caywood...
2021
Forge CellarsFinger Lakes
Gran Moraine, Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton, Oregon, USA, 2019
While clocking in under 13% abv, this powerfully concentrated, glossy Chardonnay is an impressive expression of this AVA in the western foothills of the Willamette...
2019
Gran MoraineWillamette Valley
Chateau Montelena, Chardonnay, Napa Valley, California, USA, 2020
Served from magnum. The picking team at Montelena harvested the entire Chardonnay crop in one week in late August. 2020 was a warm vintage, and...
2020
Chateau MontelenaNapa Valley
Nathan K, Chardonnay, Finger Lakes, New York State, USA, 2020
A tightly edged frame of steel and stone lends a piercing, linear tone to thirst-quenching pear and grapefruit flavours here. Accented with mere whispers of...
2020
Nathan KFinger Lakes
Savage Grace, Celilo Vineyard Chardonnay, Columbia Gorge, Washington, USA, 2017
Tasted in early 2023, Savage Grace's 2017 Chardonnay maintains a youthful verve and tightness of grip that suggests it's still approaching peak. Sourced from an...
2017
Savage GraceColumbia Gorge
Abeja, Chardonnay, Washington, USA, 2021
Fresh, forward flavours of crisp yellow peach and lemon juxtapose richer notes of baked apple and lemon curd in this silky, satisfying Chardonnay matured primarily...
2021
Abeja
Ravines, Chardonnay, Finger Lakes, New York State, USA, 2020
While subtle on the nose, hints of sweet spice and burnt caramel juxtapose fragrant camomile and pear in this juicy, intensely thirst-quenching Chardonnay. Produced with...
2020
RavinesFinger Lakes
