Drinks
21 California White Wines to Drink Now
2008 ($45)
Winemaker Kevin Kelley apprenticed in Burgundy before returning to make beautiful wines like this clean, precise chardonnay. Made from late-harvest grapes meticulously tended along the chilly, fog-shrouded slopes of the Sonoma Coast, this amber-hued chardonnay looks oaked but was made in stainless steel. It smells of heather and tastes like pineapple, honeyed pear, and apricot, balanced by bracing minerals.
2009 ($42)
Sappy and luscious with waves of peach, nectarine, and grapefruit.
2007 ($19)
Certified organic and easy to drink; tangy with white peaches and minerals.
2009 ($34)
Cured olive, pear, and apple edged by delicate wood.
2008 ($50)
Young, tense, with an edge of lime zest and a mineral intensity.
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2009 ($16)
Fleshy apple and fig balanced by a stony bite.
2009 ($15)
Lively pears and toasty vanilla from an eco-friendly winery.
2007 ($60)
Caramel-cream, peach, and green apple with richness and snap.
2007 ($36)
All-chardonnay sparkler with hints of tarte tatin, lemons, and ginger.
2004 ($85)
A luscious, yeasty, and delicate sparkler.
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2009 ($18)
Peony, fennel, and chamomile in a crisp Rhone-style blend.
2009 ($20)
Lip-smacking crispness with a mineral spine and almond-milk finish.
2009 ($25)
Lilting melon and citrus; a polished white wine.
2006 ($10.99)
Honeyed, apricot-and-musk dessert wine from a sustainable producer.
2008
Josh Jensen was among the pioneers who interned in Burgundy, bustling in the cellars of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti and Domaine Dujac as early as 1970. This Chardonnay remains an appropachable treat, with fleshy apple and fig balanced by a stony mineral bite.
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2003 ($100)
The most powerful and richest sparkling wine made in California. Intense toasted brioche, roasted nut, biscuit, and baked apricot aromas and flavors. If you like, say, Dom Perignon or Krug Champagne, this is for you.
2009
Every evolving, delightful wine that is floral and beeswaxy.
2008
Fresh, fennel and stony.
2006 ($33)
Creamy, biscuity bubbles gilded with black-cherry fragrance from an organic grower.
2008 ($25)
Lilting notes of melon and citrus radiate from this polished white wine. Drink it with cheese and fruit on the patio on a hot summer night.
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This dry, pale gold sparkler has a lively, tickling effervescence and a grapefruit and honey finish. It's citrus clean and light, great for pairing with turkey, cranberries, and cream sauces.
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