Clean and crisp, with classic flavors of lemons, limes and gooseberries, softened with a touch of buttercream and vanilla. The finish is fine and has a touch of sweet honeysuckle. A good value.

Winemaster Randy Ullom continues to shape the VR sauvignon into a more food-friendly, fresh-style sauvignon, and the '06 is the best yet. Now 99 percent sauvignon, the aromatics are bright and lifted with a cool, super clean nose of citrus, lime rind and tropical fruit aromas. On the palate, the flavours vacillate between tropical and cool nectarine skin. The fruit is predominately Lake County (82 percent), with bits of fruit from San Luis Obispo (7), Sonoma (7) and Mendocino (3). Revamped and ready to go.

The blending of six per cent Semillion and four per cent Viognier, plus aging of eight per cent of the wine in new oak illustrate how K-J is sculpting the style of Sauvignon, trying to retain core herbaceousness and zest while adding complexity. It works well. The nose shows some vanilla and butterscotch sweetness, atop green fig fruit. The palate is warm yet fresh, with a sweet note on the finish, as well as grapefruit and spice.

Pale color. Leesy aromas of fig, honey, lemon, minerals and earth. Nicely delineated but slightly hard-edged lemon and grapefruit flavors. A somewhat ungiving sauvignon that could use another six months in the bottle.

Nicely proportioned, with rich, intense, smoky, toasty oak built around the core of pear, fig and citrus flavors. Gains complexity and nuance.

The VR Chardonnay is mostly barrel fermented and aged for seven months in small oak - half French/half American. Look for leesy, mineral, melon aromas and toasted lees, vanilla, butter citrus and apple flavours. Delicious Monterey and Santa Barbara fruit that is well integrated with oak.

Aromas of pit fruits, yellow plum and spicy oak. Sweet and lush in the middle, with good density and an attractively pliant texture. Then a bit hard on the back end.

...a remarkable wine for the price. Notes of lemon custard, tropical fruits, honeysuckle, and citrus combine in this fruit-driven medium-bodied cleanly made effort. The wood influence is kept in the background for fear of compromising the wine's delicious fruit characteristics.

Rich and refreshing, with pretty oak shading the fig, vanilla, citrus, mocha and tangerine flavors.

Ripe and polished, with creamy pear and hints of apple and spice, turning to citrus and spicy, anise-tinged oak.

…exhibits a creamy, honeysuckle, ripe tropical fruit-scented nose with smoky oak in the background. It is a medium to full-bodied, ripe, lush, pure Chardonnay with a succulent, fat texture.

"A touch earthy, it works its way into more mainstream fruit flavors, with ripe pear, apricot and toasty oak. Finishes with complex oak and more fruit." also appeared in the 7/98 & 12/15/98 issue

"Bright medium-gold in color, the '96 Grand reserve holds to its style of ripe fruit character and toasty oak structure. The grapes used are sourced from Santa Barbara, Monterey, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, giving it a melange of tropical, stone and citrus fruit flavors and aromas. Fermentation in French oak barrels adds notes of nutmeg, butter and toast, rounding out a very stylish wine. It's medium-bodied rather than dense or powerfully concentrated, and it will pair will with big foods such as lobster tempura, as there is enough acidity to cut the richness.

Pale straw with bright green highlights. Medium-bodied. Balanced acidity. Moderate extract, mild oak. Orchard fruit, brown spice. Spicy apple aromas lead into lively hints of oak spice on the crisp finish.

Citrus zest, earth, nuts. Moderately balanced with fruit that turns soft as it develops.

The fuller, richer, more oak-influenced 1992 Chardonnay Camelot Vineyard is full-bodied, rich, and layered, with crisp acidity. It should be drunk over the next year.

There's lovely fruit here, the opulent sort which suggests the tropics, and admirable balance and length.

Concentrated apple and pear flavors are flanked by zesty spicy notes. Dried herb and sea salt accents show on the finish.

Aromas of grainy oak, buttered toast, sea salt, pan-seared apples and a hint of white flowers show on the nose of this always classic and familiar wine. It's fairly viscous on the palate, where strong flavors of roasted apple, buttered toast and tangerine spray arise.

This light yellow colored Chardonnay from Kendall Jackson is consistently very good. It opens with a lemon, apple and mild oak bouquet. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced and easy going. The flavor profile mirrors the nose with light lemon, green apple, mild oak and butter flavors. The finish is dry and its flavors linger nicely. This Chard is friendly. As always, it is a nice glass pour option.

The 2016 Chardonnay Stature opens with ripe peaches, spiced pears and honeyed toast notes plus touches of nutmeg and candle wax. Medium to full-bodied, it has a pleasantly oily texture and a great intensity of ripe, rich fruit, finishing long and spicy.

Arguably, Kendall-Jackson is largely responsible for Americans’ love of Chardonnay.  So, it’s not surprising that they should expand their portfolio with site-specific bottlings of that variety.  This one, from Santa Maria Valley, delivers fruity, spiced pineapple-like flavors along with the opulence for which KJ is known. 88 points.

Hazelnut, browned butter, honeysuckle and strong orangesicle aromas show on the nose of this bottling, which fits into the classic California Chardonnay category. There’s a rounded entry to the palate, offering flavors of Gravenstein apple and poached pear that are carried on chalky backbone.

Meyer lemon, hazelnut and Gravenstein apple aromas show on the clean and restrained nose of this Chardonnay that comes from Santa Barbara and Monterey counties. Rounded peach blossom, Bartlett pear and more roasted nuts appear on the tightly wound sip.

The 2016 Chardonnay Grand Reserve is scented of ripe honeydew melons, peach blossoms and rose water with a waft of honey-drizzled apricots. Medium-bodied, lively and with plenty of ripe melon and stone fruit flavors, it has nice spice and toast suggestions.