Smith-Madrone continues to excel with 2021 Chardonnay

In times of some tumult, I turn to familiar joys. Hikes at my local park, visits with my owl friends in the woods, spending time with family and friends, and revisiting wines that have never let me down.

Credit: Matthew Denny

For me, Spring Mountain’s Smith-Madrone is one of the most reliable producers in California wine. I’m of the opinion they make one of, if not the, best Rieslings in California – a crisp, complex, racy, and age-worthy white I’ve enjoyed many times. And their Cab:  another stunner and friend of the patient cellar-owner, somehow flies just low enough under the radar as to remain a relative screaming bargain in the Napa Cab category.

But my favorite is their Chardonnay. It’s uniquely crisp and mineral-driven, while showing the bountiful fruit and depth of their mountain vineyard terroir. And the legacy of duo Stu and Charles Smith lives on in the 2021 vintage. It’s worth every penny, delicious right now, but will surely reward those who cellar it.

Let me know what you think if you’ve tried a Smith-Madrone wine recently. And, if the answer is “I never have” – you may want to reconsider.

This wine was received as a sample and tasted sighted.

2021 Smith-Madrone Chardonnay - USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District

SRP: $45
Pretty yellow color. Excellent aromatic display of white peaches, lemon-lime, green apples, with sea salt, chalk dust, hints of hay and yellow flowers, and notes of honey, almond skin, and hazelnut. The palate sports such precision and lively acidity, balanced wonderfully with this creamy concentration of texture. Flavors of crunchy yellow apples, white peaches, and limes, matched by an infusion of minerals, chalk, and sea salt, with notes of hay, white and yellow flowers, hazelnut, and white pepper. I wrote “mineral city” and underlined it. Lovely in its youth, but this will age very nicely, too. (94 points)