DAOU Chardonnay 2021
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Wilfred
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Winemaker Notes
The 2021 Discovery Chardonnay leads with a stunning nose of juicy pineapple, freshly sliced pears, lemon chiffon, and warm toast. Spicy notes of nutmeg and ginger are highlighted with star jasmine and honeysuckle fragrances accompanied by hints of smoky oak and hazelnut. Elegant and silky on the palate, this Chardonnay offers delectable peach, melon, and green apple flavors accentuated by tropical notes of mango, guava, pineapple, and kiwi. A clean, exceptionally balanced finish is rounded out with essences of sweet Crenshaw melon, nectarine and papaya.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
A warm growing season leading into a cool harvest time gives a tension-filled wine that is both rich yet fresh with persistent acidity. Lemon curd, vanilla bean and toasted nuts on the nose, then rich lactic notes on the palate. Full-bodied and mouthfilling. The varietal character shines through despite a heavy hand in the winery. A long, spice-filled finish punctuates this exceptional wine.
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Wine Enthusiast
There's a guava character to the nose of this bottling, yet it's cut by a river stone edge. A bright sizzle of acidity and a chalky flesh envelop the palate, with plumeria and more guava flavors at play.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2021 DAOU Discovery Collection Chardonnay is an excellent wine. TASTING NOTES: This wine excels with aromas and flavors of ripe peach skin, hints of oak, dried earth, and savory spices. Try it with a grilled chicken with fresh garden lettuce. (Tasted: September 17, 2022, San Francisco, CA)
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Brothers Georges Daou and Daniel Daou set forth across the globe to find an unrivaled terroir for producing Cabernet Sauvignon, a quest that led them to a place of foretold greatness: DAOU Mountain in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles. DAOU Family Estates is a family owned and operated winery committed to producing collectible, world-class wine to rival the most respected appellations. Situated on a 212-acre hilltop estate in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles, this remarkable mountain was once described by André Tchelistcheff, legendary winemaking authority, as "a jewel of ecological elements."
DAOU Mountain stands alone at an elevation of 2,200 feet, rising from the heart of the Adelaida District in the rugged coastal range west of Paso Robles. The steep slopes here reach up to 56 percent, with uniform exposure to the elements across the estate. It is a terroir of power, purity, and symmetry with every natural asset necessary to pursue the perfect Cabernet Sauvignon—including calcareous clay soils that emulate Bordeaux’s Right Bank and a climate that mirrors St. Helena.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Paso Robles has made a name for itself as a source of supple, powerful, fruit-driven Central Coast wines. But with eleven smaller sub-AVAs, there is actually quite a bit of diversity to be found in this inland portion of California’s Central Coast.
Just east over the Santa Lucia Mountains from the chilly Pacific Ocean, lie the coolest in the region: Adelaida, Templeton Gap and (Paso Robles) Willow Creek Districts, as well as York Mountain AVA and Santa Margarita Ranch. These all experience more ocean fog, wind and precipitation compared to the rest of the Paso sub-appellations. The San Miguel, (Paso Robles) Estrella, (Paso Robles) Geneso, (Paso Robles) Highlands, El Pomar and Creston Districts, along with San Juan Creek, are the hotter, more western appellations of the greater Paso Robles AVA.
This is mostly red wine country, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel standing out as the star performers. Other popular varieties include Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Grenache and Rhône blends, both red and white. There is a fairly uniform tendency here towards wines that are unapologetically bold and opulently fruit-driven, albeit with a surprising amount of acidity thanks to the region’s chilly nighttime temperatures.