Wine Spectrum Top 100 

#7 Wine of 2019 is 2017 Rivers Marie Bearwallow Chardonnay

2017 Rivers Marie Bearwallow Chardonnay

Chardonnay |  Anderson Valley |  Wine Spectrum 95 | Buy Here

Rare new release from Rivers-Marie owner and winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown. 

Thomas River Brown is without question the most sought after consulting winemaking in California.  His portfolio of clients are some of the greatest producers in Napa and Sonoma. Rivers-Marie is the personal project of Thomas and his wife Genevive where they produce site-driven Cabernet, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Winemaker Notes: It’s nice to see this stand out from the pack, mostly because it should.  Our winemaking style has always produced site driven wines first and here we get a small assist from the vintage to complete the delineation.  This might be the one bottling that has a little more give than its previous vintage version.  It is once again yellow fruit focused with additional notes of hazelnut, white peach, guava and chamomile.  A little bit of white chocolate emerges on the finish to give more roundness to the wine. 

Tasting Notes:

The 2017 Chardonnay Bearwallow Vineyard bristles with tension, nuance and brilliance. Lemon confit, tangerine, white flowers, mint and almond are beautifully delineated and vibrant. Medium in body and wonderfully nuanced, the 2017 is another Chardonnay in this range that will drink well upon release. The Bearwallow is sourced from the Anderson Valley vineyard that belongs to Kevin Harvey of Rhys.