2016 Gold Crush Chardonnay California 750 ml

Drinking like a spiritual successor to Rombauer, Benovia, and Far Niente, the 2016 Gold Crush Chardonnay cracks the code of luscious, oak-kissed California Chardonnay—and it transformed us into instant fans.

Swaggering and rich, loaded with poached pear, vanilla bean, and mandarin orange, it’s a seductive modern iteration of the pioneering West Coast style that made Chardonnay King in the States. 

We mention Gold Crush in the same breath as the big-hitter Chardonnay icons because it stood tall next to such competition in a tasting we attended last month. A group of sommeliers, wine professionals, and winemakers assembled for a loose, casual affair at a famous wine auctioneer’s house, each guest bringing a favorite Chardonnay to be tasted blind, regardless of price.

When we had run through a dazzling array of bottles, from bone-dry and brightly acidic to aged, mellow masterpieces, one entry landed near the top of almost everyone’s list. It was the 2016 Gold Crush—the latest find by legendary distributor Kimberly Jones, whose heat-seeking instincts have built a powerhouse portfolio that includes Wine Access uber-favorite Tensley and legends like Kongsgaard and Amici.

It was immediately clear to everyone that she had landed another massive hit with Gold Crush, and our first question was how much of the allocation we could lock in for Wine Access. Our second, how the winemakers could possibly pull this kind of mouth-filling voluptuousness off at a value price?

Gold Crush was founded by Kristopher Garrett and Brandon Bergener. As the owner of a wine shop for ten years, Garrett developed a fine-tuned sense of what drinkers wanted. He and Bergener witnessed the rise of full-bodied, powerful Chardonnays like Rombauer and Far Niente, while hearing daily from customers who wanted that pedigree at a more affordable price point. Sensing an opportunity, Gold Crush was born.

To attain that opulence while keeping prices low, Garrett and Bergener hired Anna Clifford as winemaker, who previously worked with Rombauer’s winemaker. They bought grapes from the Sacramento Delta—known to the hip, young winemakers these days simply as “the Delta”—where summer fog and maritime influence instill grapes with enough scintillating acidity to balance the full-throated chorus of tropical and stone fruits.

Full malolactic fermentation provides luscious mouthfeel and richness, amplified by weekly batonnage and accented by fine notes of spice and orange-cinnamon, thanks to aging in new American oak. 

Gold Crush is an exciting new entry to California’s pantheon of buttery greats—and the only one you’ll find at a bargain price like this.