Crisp and dry, with flavors of melons and citrus.

The pronounced minerality gives it a wonderful feel in the mouth. You won't taste that overt grassiness the grape is known for, but you will taste the expected notes of citrus and spice. There's a bit of sauvignon musqué in the blend, which adds nuance.

Joshua Greene, our critic for California sauvignon blanc, rated 16 as exceptional (90+).

Big, rich, crisp, and full-bodied, with flavors of white grapefruit.

This is the first and so far only vintage of this botrytized sauvignon blanc dessert wine, made in the style of a Sauternes, lush and overwhelmed by flavors and aromas of peach and honeysuckle and a touch of hazelnut.

These are wines that don't sacrifice quality for affordability.

Classy, with details of barrel spice.

Grapefruit and citrus notes with soft texture. Fermented and aged in French oak and blended with sauvignon musque for a rounder texture.

The blend is 85 percent merlot, 12 percent cabernet sauvignon and 3 percent syrah. Cherry and mature oak nose. Expressive complex cherry flavors in the mouth that really add up to a terrifically pleasing wine.

This wine, a rich but not intensely flavorful style of Sauvignon Blanc, is a change of pace from the super-flavorful versions that California is increasingly producing in emulation of New Zealands wines. It is dry and medium-bodied, with rich texture of its high (14%) alcohol and yet refreshing crisp acidity. Although its aromas and flavors are fruity (pear, orange rind, and some tropical fruit) partially thanks to a significant amount (23%) of Sauvignon Musque, they are fairly subtle. No oaky character is evident; in fact, only 10% of the wine is fermented in oak barrels. Flavors show very good concentration and length. A wine to enjoy young; its great with bitter vegetables such as broccoli rabe, with goat cheese pizza, and with stir-fry chicken.

The medium-bodied, crisp 2004 Sauvignon Blanc possesses pleasant lemon zest, honey, fig, melon, and stone fruit notes. Drink it over the next year.

Ripe, with vanilla tones framing melon, pineapple and pear flavors, with tart citrus and grass character on the finish. Drink now. 10,000 cases made.

Rich, showy and vibrant. Grassy, with notes of lemon, lime and anise. Medium-bodied and elegant. Light tannins.

Creamy oak is impossible to overlook in both the nose and flavors of this substantial Chardonnay, but sweet, gala-apple fruitiness is the wine's lodestar, and that attractive fruit persists despite a bit of late-arriving coarseness. Very well-made, this one gets better with a year or two of keeping.

A flagship wine of Matanzas Creek Winery, Journey draws grapes from four blocks of Alexander Mountain Estate vineyards. Elegant in style it has the right amount of acidity and oak to keep the rich peach and pear flavors in check. This is an incredible wine.

Review of Matanzas Journey Red Blend & Chardonnay Marcia Torres Forno has been at the helm at the Matanzas winery since 2010. More than 25 years ago, the 1990 Matanzas Winery Journey Chardonnay was considered one of the highest priced Chardonnay in Sonoma. At that time, the retail price was $70. Today the price is just slightly higher. Yet the quality and especially the quality to value remains high. Chardonnay grapes are selected from blocks known for their quality. Blocks are located at different altitudes. This gives more acidity and complexity to the wine. The must is transferred and fermented and new and neutral French barrels. There is a great deal of richness in this wine, yet also vibrant acidity.

Full bodied, round, and intensely flavored, this wine has good depth of fruit, evident complexity, and a smooth long finish, tasting of apple, pineapple, vanilla, peach, and spicy oak. Long aftertaste. Excellent value. 4+ stars, excellent.

While Matanzas seemed to have specialized in Sauvignon Blanc, its Chardonnay line is diverse and fruit focused. The Matanzas Creek Sonoma County Chardonnay 2015 has fleshy red apple and toasty almond flavors. There’s a hint of buttery popcorn on the finish.

Lush with apple and peach notes and a hint of lemon. The wine is treated to full malolatic fermentation and nine months of French oak aging, which adds a bit of vanilla and butterscotch and caramel.

The Bennett Valley Chardonnay 2015 has butterscotch and brioche flavors.

This is a chardonnay with quite a range — lemon, peach, toast and hazelnut. It has bright acidity and a seamless texture. Solid.

Lavender and buttery citrus make this ripe, sexy chardonnay a winner. Buttery and luscious, like a classic sunshiny Cali chard, balanced by a nice hit of citrus and minerality. Winemaker Marcia Torres Forno starts in the vineyard, using sustainable practices, low yields and a combination of native and cultured yeasts to deliver a mouth-filling chardonnay, nutty and nicely balanced, despite tipping 14.5 percent alcohol.

This chardonnay is for people who love to taste power in a white wine — and not just the fruit, but the oak and alcohol. It’s a complex wine built of cool mountain fruit with a bright citrus/apple/marzipan character and granite minerality. Balancing all that flavor is a sturdy spine of acidity. It’s made to order for pairing with fresh-caught seafood or delicately cooked chicken, veal or pork.

Hint of toasty oak, buttery, full-bodied and rich, with aroma of cooked-down apricots and tangerines.

The Journey Chardonnay 2013 is richer and more elegant than its counterparts. It’s streamlined flavors of browned sugar creme brulee.