The Wine Independent – September 2022 – The Citrus Circus

Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

One of a handful of the USA’s greatest Chardonnay producers and right up there with the top Chardonnay estates in the world, Aubert knocks it out of the park again with their latest line-up of 2020 and 2021 releases…I found the newly bottled 2021 Pinot Noirs to be the finest Aubert has produced.

2021 Chardonnay CIX Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 98-100 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay CIX Estate was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It swans out of the glass with notions of ripe apricots, juicy pears, and quince paste, plus suggestions of grapefruit oil, lemongrass, and toasted almonds with a touch of beeswax. Full-bodied, rich, vibrant, multi-layered, and flawless, the palate is a seamless, complex, creamy powerhouse that is impossible to put down. The finish goes on forever.

2021 Chardonnay Eastside Vineyard Russian River
Score: 98-100 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Eastside was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It comes barreling out with bold notes of fresh peaches, lime cordial, and orange blossom with touches of crushed rocks, toasted almonds, and honeysuckle. The full-bodied palate delivers compelling tension with taut, tightly knit layers, culminating in a wonderfully exotic, pineapple and guava-laced finish.

2021 Chardonnay Larry Hyde & Sons Vineyard Carneros
Score: 96-98 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Larry Hyde & Sons was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It springs from the glass with electric scents of lemon and grapefruit juices, leading to suggestions of fresh ginger, crushed stones, and brine. The full-bodied palate delivers beautiful seamlessness, with a silken texture and wonderful lift on the long, long finish.

2021 Chardonnay Lauren Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 98-100 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Lauren Estate, tasted as a tank sample due to be bottled in December 2022, was made with 100% new oak – though it doesn’t show. It prances out with showy scents of ginger tea, lemon meringue pie, grapefruit oil, and sassafras with touches of allspice and sea spray plus a hint of jasmine. Full-bodied, rich, opulent, and spicy / savory, it has an amazingly satiny texture with electric tension and incredible length. So thick and yet so ethereal, this is a jaw-dropper.

2021 Chardonnay Park Avenue Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 97-99 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Park Avenue was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It skips out of the glass with bright, cheery notes of ginger ale, sassafras, lemon curd, coriander seed, and crystallized orange peel with a hint of white pepper. The full-bodied palate is satiny smooth with layers of citrus and stone fruits, supported by a lively backbone, finishing long and minerally.

2021 Chardonnay Powder House Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 96-98+ Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Powder House was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It soars out of the glass with a gorgeous perfume of peach cobbler, apple blossoms, and honeydew melon, leading to suggestions of persimmons, quince, spice cake, and almond croissant with a waft of honeycomb. Full-bodied, the palate is so fragrant and graceful, with a fantastic seamlessness and silken texture, leading to amazing length and depth on the finish of this gorgeous wine.

2021 Chardonnay Sugar Shack Estate Vineyard Napa Valley
Score: 96-98 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay Sugar Shack was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It rolls effortlessly out of the glass with alluring notes of juicy nectarines, honeydew melon, and lemon pastilles, plus wafts of sassafras and marzipan. Full-bodied, the flavors build in the mouth, stacking layers of citrus, melon, and spices, finishing opulent.

2021 Chardonnay UV-SL Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 97-99 Points

The 2021 Chardonnay UV-SL was tasted as a tank sample, due to be bottled in December 2022. It opens with compelling struck flint and wet slate wafts before going full-throttle with grapefruit, green mango, and pineapple scents, leading to suggestions of lime and yuzu zest. The full-bodied palate is powerful, muscular, and dense with a creamy texture and a fantastically long honey and hazelnut-laced finish.

2021 Pinot Noir CIX Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 97 Points

The 2021 Pinot Noir CIX Estate was bottled in mid-July 2022. Medium to deep ruby-purple colored, it slowly unfurls to offer glimpses at cracked black pepper, Ceylon tea, garrigue, and mossy tree bark with a core of pomegranate, fresh blackberries, and kirsch. Full-bodied, taut, and muscular, it has a nice graininess to the tannins and seamless freshness supporting the earth-laced red and black fruit layers, finishing long and lifted.

2021 Pinot Noir UV Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 96 Points

The 2021 Pinot Noir UV was bottled in mid-July 2022. Medium to deep ruby-purple colored, it comes bounding out with youthful scents of black cherries, black raspberries, and wild strawberries, plus suggestions of violets, chocolate mint, wild sage, and fragrant earth. The full-bodied palate is fantastically light on its feet, with beautiful freshness and ripe, fine-grained tannins, finishing long and savory.

2021 Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 98 Points

The 2021 Pinot Noir UV-SL was bottled in mid-July 2022. Medium to deep ruby-purple colored, it storms out of the glass with powerful notes of mulberries, black cherry compote, and wild blueberries with hints of raspberry leaves, crushed stones, and underbrush plus a hint of cardamom. Full-bodied, concentrated, and seductive, with beautifully velvety tannins and a lively backbone, it finishes long, with loads of floral notes coming through.

2020 Chardonnay CIX Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 99 Points

The 2020 Chardonnay CIX Estate comes bounding out of the glass with youthful notes of fresh lemons and lime, grapefruit oil, and chalk dust, with wafts of paraffin wax, lily of the valley, and wet pebbles. The palate is full-on full-bodied and fantastically textured, with viscous ripples of flavor and seamless acidity, finishing with a lingering spicy kick.

2020 Chardonnay Larry Hyde & Sons Vineyard Carneros
Score: 97 Points

The 2020 Chardonnay Larry Hyde & Sons bursts form the glass with notes of lemongrass and ginger tea, orange blossoms, and lime cordial with wafts of yuzu and struck flint. The full-bodied palate shimmers with energy, framed by a racy backbone and creamy texture, finishing with epic length and a whole firework display of citrus sparks.

2020 Chardonnay Lauren Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 100 Points

The nose on the 2020 Chardonnay Lauren Estate starts off with a beautiful briny / sea spray character, leading to intense grapefruit oil, lemonade, and ginger tea scents, plus wafts of lime leaves, ginger ale, and crushed stones. The full-bodied palate delivers fantastic tension with a lively backbone cutting through super-intense, tightly wound citrus and stone layers, finishing long and so, so fragrant.

2020 Chardonnay Park Avenue Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 98 Points

The 2020 Chardonnay Park Avenue comes galloping out of the glass with energetic notes of mandarin peel, Golden Delicious apples, honeysuckle, and toasted almonds, plus suggestions of lime zest, powdered ginger, and wet slate. The full-bodied palate delivers a rock-solid structure of racy acidity and creamy texture, supporting the muscular layers of citrus and spice flavors, finishing with incredible length and depth.

2020 Chardonnay Powder House Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 99 Points

The 2020 Chardonnay Powder House rockets out with powerful notes of key lime pie, jasmine tea, and candied orange peel, plus notes of oyster shell, nutmeg, fresh ginger, and citron blossom. The full-bodied palate is viscous and opulent with layer upon layer of citrus and savory flavors, lifted by a refreshing backbone, finishing long with loads of mineral nuances.

2020 Chardonnay Sugar Shack Estate Vineyard Napa Valley
Score: 97 Points

The 2020 Chardonnay Sugar Shack strolls out of the glass with confident notes of apple pie, peach cobbler, fresh Bosc pears, and allspice with touches of limes leaves and green mango, plus a hint of marzipan. The full-bodied palate delivers loads of apple and pear layers with spicy accents and soft acidity, finishing soft, satiny, and decadent.

2020 Chardonnay UV-SL Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Score: 98+ Points

The 2020 Chardonnay UV-SL charges out of the gate with vibrant notes of grapefruit, lemon tart, and coriander seed, leading to wafts of struck flint, sea spray, yuzu zest, and peach blossom. Full-bodied, rich, and densely laden in the mouth with lemon and lime oil layers, it has just enough freshness and a pleasant suggestion of oiliness to the texture, finishing long and lifted.