Wine Reviews

Keenly structured and polished, with lilting lemon, nectarine and stony mineral accents that end with steely, fresh acidity. Drink now.

The 2023 Chardonnay Koosah Vineyard was matured for 16 months in 30% new French oak. It has slowly unfurling scents of matchstick, Meyer lemon, stone fruit and crème brûlée. The light-bodied palate is vibrant and shimmery with flinty, citrusy flavors, vertical acidity and a long, perfumed finish. Reminiscent of Chablis, it will benefit from time in the cellar.

The 2024 Chardonnay Koosah Vineyard is airy and fresh, cascading from the glass with notes of crushed nectarine, dried herbs, stone dust and pine shavings. This is deeply textural, nearly oily in feel, with a balance of mineral depth, while tantalizing acidity supports ripe pit fruits and a vivid hint of butterscotch toward the close. The 2024 cleans up remarkably well, long and gently spiced, leaving an air of mint and evergreen.

A remarkably pretty blend of chamomile, sweet smoke, white peach and lemon sorbet introduces the 2023 Chardonnay Koosah Vineyard. Pure yet potent, it washes across the palate with textures of weighted silk lifted by vibrant acidity as crisp white pit fruits swirl over a core of saline minerals. The 2023 lingers incredibly long, leaving the senses saturated with primary concentration as a cascade of inner florals and a slight citrus twang fade.

Now a Résonance estate property, the Koosah vineyard was planted in 2016 by the bold Kevin and Carla Chambers in what was then the highest-elevation vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills. Its Chardonnays are becoming the stuff of legend. Generous aromas of lemon pastry cream, beeswax and rich white florals. The palate is shimmering in its reductive glory, great crystaline sea salt, green mangoes, ginger and savory lemon verbena. It’s yet another example of both the vineyard’s and the appellation’s realization of great Chardonnay potential. A stunner.