J Wilkes Chardonnay 2013
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Wilfred
Wong -
Tasting
Panel
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Round and soft enough to sip, bright and lively enough to cleanse the palate between bites of Maine lobster with drawn butter, fried clams, roast or fried chicken, pancetta-wrapped halibut in beurre blanc or BBQ brisket.
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
Can a versatile Chardonnay—one that is ideally suited for cocktail gatherings and comfortable at the dinner table—be taken seriously? Well, yes if you taste this one. The 2013 J. Wilkes Chardonnay exhibits an inviting ripe fruit and smooth palate style and still manages a to finish with a crisp and dry aftertaste. Try sipping on the veranda and then savoring with roast chicken in the dining room, you'll see that it all works. Drinking well now. (Tasted: August 25, 2016, San Francisco, CA)
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Tasting Panel
Ripe yellow apple, pear and pineapple scented with honeysuckle give way to wet river rock after a substantial, butter-tinged mid-palate. This is a great Chardonnay for those who want something between a butter-bob and stainless steel version.
Other Vintages
2021-
Wine &
Spirits
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Wine &
Spirits -
Jeb
Dunnuck
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Tasting
Panel -
Jeb
Dunnuck
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Wine
Enthusiast -
Wine
Spectator
After a long and rewarding career as a salesman, grape grower and ambassador for Santa Maria and Paso Robles wine, Jeff Wilkes decided to try his hand at winemaking.
He went to his long-time employer and friend, Steve Miller, with a proposal to create wines that focused on California’s Central Coast, through the lens of two of its sub-AVA’s, Santa Maria and Paso Robles Highlands.
Jeff launched his namesake label in 2001 and immediately received critical acclaim. He continued on that path until his untimely passing in 2010. Inspired by Jeff’s vision and moved by their friendship, the Miller family decided to continue the J. Wilkes label as a tribute to Jeff’s passion.
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.
A lesser-known but elite AVA within the larger Santa Barbara district, the Santa Maria Valley AVA runs precisely west to east starting near the coast. The valley funnels cool, Pacific Ocean air to the vineyards more inland, allowing grapes a longer hang time to ripen evenly and achieve their full potential by harvest time. Combined with minimal rainfall, consistent warm sunshine, and well-drained soils, it is an ideal environment for grape growing.
Many of the wineries here are small and highly respected, having established a reputation in the 1970s and 80s for producing excellent Central Coast wines like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. More recently, Syrah has also proven quite successful in the region. Many vineyards are owned by growers who sell their grapes to other wineries, so it is common to see the same vineyard name on bottlings from different wineries. Bien Nacido Vineyard is perhaps the best-known and most prestigious.