Unlock the secrets behind why certain wines captivate our senses and discover the artistry behind the J Lohr Riverstone Arroyo Seco Chardonnay 2023. Join Domain Dave from CheapWineFinder.com as we unravel the fascinating combination of history, geography, and winemaking techniques that set this Chardonnay apart. Learn how the unique climate of the Arroyo Seco region and its stony soil contribute to the exquisite minerality and vine protection that define this estate wine. We promise a journey through the rich legacy of the J Lohr family winery, family-owned and thriving since 1974, where you’ll gain insights into their meticulous approach to cultivating and crafting exceptional wines.
Explore the complex interplay of flavors brought to life through barrel fermentation, diverse Chardonnay clones, and a blend of American, French, and Hungarian oak. With expert guidance, we’ll dissect the nuanced tasting notes; expect to encounter hints of lemon curd, peach, pear, and more. Understand the role of malolactic fermentation and how it refines the wine’s texture and taste, creating a harmonious symphony of flavors that dance on your palate. Whether you’re a seasoned wine enthusiast or a curious newcomer, this episode is your guide to appreciating the finer details that make a Chardonnay great. Indulge your curiosity and elevate your wine-tasting experiences with insights that reveal the true essence of this remarkable vintage.
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0:07
hey, domain dave, cheap wine findercom. Again, another wine review, like always, and this time we've got a um chardonnay from a actual winery, and this is an estate wine. It it's from California. It's the J Lohr Riverstone Arroyo Seco Chardonnay 2023.
Speaker 1:
0:30
Arroyo Seco translates to dry riverbed and that's where the riverstone comes in. There are stones that are embedded into the ground of the vineyard and when the sun beats down on the vineyard, the earth warms up, but the stones hold on to the heat. So when you have cold snaps in the spring or in the fall, the vines are protected because they have this warmth of the ground and plus it adds a little minerality to it. So it's kind of a good place to plant vineyards. And arroyo secco is, uh, on the north end. It runs into the monterey bay and it kind of runs southeast across the riverbed and it's um in the monterey bay. On the out, on the monterey Bay, on the Monterey Bay, there's this blue dot that is the coldest spot in the entire ocean, so you got cool breezes coming in. But the farther down the Arroyo Seco you get, the warmer it gets. But I'm not sure where Jay Lord's been around since 1974. They're family owned, still family owned after all these years, and this is a state wine. They have vineyards in Arroyo Seco and it's pretty good.
Speaker 1:
1:51
One thing I kind of like when I'm doing Trader Joe's wines or anything. Sometimes Costco has some information. They tell you why you like this wine. I like to know why I like a wine and they tell me here. So you've get good. You got a family-owned winery that knows their vineyards. You've got a good location.
Speaker 1:
2:11
Royal Seco is kind of an interesting place. It's in an arid zone. The rain goes on the other side of the mountain, doesn't it? So you get very little water here, which is kind of good. Grapes that struggle supposedly taste better. I've heard both ways on that, but I know it kind of works that way. I'm going to take a sip.
Speaker 1:
2:39
This is a barrel fermented wine rather than stainless steel. Barrel fermented wine rather than stainless steel. And 62% of the wine would also underwent malolactic fermentation red wine almost always. It's a rare red wine that doesn't undergo malolactic. It turns the tart grape that is naturally in grapes to a lactose type of acidity and it helps when you add oak to a wine that just marries it better than the sharpness does. But it's only 62% of it was malolactic. The other part was the sharp wine. So you get this mix of the two. It was.
Speaker 1:
3:24
Then, after it was fermented, they switched it over to barrels to age for seven to nine months. Each lot had a different aging thing and they used American oak, french oak and Hungarian oak. Hungarian oak and French oak are the same species and can almost be used interchangeably. But the better wines always use french, just because I don't know. American oak gives you that chocolate and vanilla thing that people like. It's got a wider grain, but do you see it work in france? They would never use it on a wine, but the same France.
Speaker 1:
4:04
And they use clones. Clones are important in wine and something about value, price wines. They never tell you the clones. Sometimes they don't care, they're just grabbing what they got that are good grapes and they don't really. They're not really looking for this clone, that clone, how they all intermingle with each other. But here they've got like nine different grapes or nine different clones. It's like um roses. They're single rows, a double rose, all these different colors, all these different things, bush rose, the different clones for the chardonnays all bring something different to the wine. So you can have 100 chardonnay wine, which this is, but you're mixing different flavors together, even though it's all Chardonnay, cool huh.
Speaker 1:
4:47
I'm gonna take another sip. This is kind of lemon, curd, peach, pear, coconut milk, butterscotch, vanilla, stone fruit. It's got a nice mouthfeel. It's got a good weight to it. There's probably more flavors in there if you keep on looking at it. This is not the time to be examining the wine, but it does have some really interesting flavors, some interesting spice, soft spice, a creamy texture, which is nice. They stir the leaves and you get creaminess and a saltiness, uh, a salty effect. I don't get the salt here, but I get the creaminess. Uh, this is a wine I found for 12.99 and I looked in the web and it's about 12.99 everywhere, at least in that ballpark and buck a buck or so either way. And for an estate wine from an established, top-notch winery and these guys are good, that's a really nice price for a wine. So if you're looking for a quality chardonnay and they changed their um label the last few years it's uh, it's kind of pretty now. It used to be more traditional, now it's kind of a pretty label.
Speaker 1:
6:18
If you're looking for something for for the table, this would really go well with different meals. It's got enough body that can stand up to a few things. I don't know if you want a steak with this, but you might get away with that, you know. But other things would be just fine. Pork, of course, anything else, salads, whatever, or just sip. It's smooth enough to just sip. I'm going to take one more sip and then I'm going to wrap this right up. It's a good-tasting Chardonnay. That's it for me. Domain Dave, chief of WineFindercom. I guess we like your podcast. This was the J Lor Riverstone Arroyo Seco Chardonnay 2023. It's a good one. We got a couple more wines coming up, a bunch more coming up, so I'll be talking to you. Bye.
