This lush, rich, oaked Chardonnay is produced off K-J’s vineyards in Monterey and Santa Barbara counties. It’s a big, full-bodied, elegant wine with intense aromas and a creaminess on the palate infused with spicy, smoky French oak. Think lemon and lime, passion fruit, pineapple, floral tones and vanilla and spice. It has a sturdy backbone of acidity for structure.

Vanilla aromas from the oak, lush tropical fruit flavors, very rich and spicy, full body.

Lush, crisp and naked — breaking down good Chardonnay People want to condemn K-J chardonnay because it's so common on the market, but bang for your buck it provides a consistent, well-made value chardonnay, albeit a tad sweet.

This big California producer doesn't make many single-vineyard wines and instead concentrates on using multiple sources for grapes. The result is an enjoyable - although often generic - wine that is reasonably priced and easy to find. That's certainly the case with this delicious chardonnay with tropical fruit flavors and a spicy finish.

Clean, crisp, and lively, this Chardonnay offers only a faint hint of oak, supplanting the taste of wood with bright, fresh fruit. While it lacks the earthiness or minerality that can characterize the best Chardonnays made in this style (think Chablis), it comes at a very fair price and is extremely tasty. In addition, secondary complexity, while wonderful in a wine sipped on its own, can get lost with food. Nothing like that happens here.

Avant Chardonnay has been on my radar since its inception in 2009. It has a consistent style and appeal. The idea is to ferment most of the wine in stainless steel to keep the freshness of the fruit and the rest in neutral oak barrels to broaden the mouth feel, increase the complexity. This one is lively and fresh. It starts out with a subtle creaminess in the mouth and finishes tart and dry. The fruit is green apple, pear and lemon with a subtle infusion of spicy oak.

From the same stable as the ubiquitous Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay – the wine that put California Chardonnay on the map, and seemingly in every wine drinker’s glass, in the 1990’s – this is KJ’s response to the growing demand for less oaked Chardonnay. And a very welcome addition it is too.

A tropical chardonnay with mango and pineapple flavors up front. Aromas of honey, butter and a hint of vanilla. Nice length.

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There is good reason K-J does so well with its chardonnay. Very clean, well made, balanced and delicious. Grapes for this wine come from five counties, so don't expect something site specific.

Strap yourself in: This Chardonnay is just about as full-bodied as they come. Plus-size? Yes, that would describe it. Camelot Highlands is a vineyard near Santa Barbara planted on an uplifted seabed from prehistoric times. It’s along the Tepusquet Bench in the Santa Maria Valley where the growing season is long. Vines are more than 40 years old and are still on their own rootstock. The wine is practically an essence of Chardonnay — creamy and lush and concentrated on the palate with an infusion of brown spice off the French oak and tons of juicy tropical fruit flavors.

Kendall Jackson winemaker Randy Ullom combined fruit from Monterey County for citrus and floral notes, with fruit from vineyards in the Santa Maria benchland in Santa Barbara for structure and richness to create this wine. Several different clones are in play - including the exotic Rued clone - adding yet more complexity. Enjoy this well-balanced Chardonnay for its tropical and citrus aromas and flavors and notes of apple, vanilla and toast on the finish.

Let this golden beauty sit in the glass a while to warm up and relax, and release the intense, rich aromas. This is a big wine with fruit that is enhanced by French oak — toasty wood that imparts texture in the mouth and gently infuses smoke and spice into the flavors. The wine has lush texture and a firm backbone of acidity. Aromas are green apple, pear, apricot and creme brulee. There is a spicy sweet note on the midpalate. It’s a wine to sip and study in the mouth. Grapes are off hillside vineyards in Monterey County and Santa Barbara County. It is handcrafted from the top 7 percent of all Kendall-Jackson wine lots. This is surely artisan winemaking.

Another tropical fruit driven beauty from Kendall-Jackson. This wine is well balanced with good acidity to balance the abundant citrus, pineapple, and hint of banana in the nose and mouth. Just a joy to drink as a summertime quaffer.

A tasty chardonnay with refreshing acidity. Aromas and flavors of pear, apple and lemon. Lightly toasted. Great minerality. Nice length.

The latter wine's eminently quaffable companion, the 86-point Kendall-Jackson Avant California will appeal to those looking for a lighter but still fruity version...

Very nice yeasty toasty notes in the nose with citrus and peach flavors developing in the mouth. A lot of pleasure and complexity for the price. Try this one.

Chardonnay...and the very likeable, keenly fruited one star Kendall-Jackson Vintner's Reserve California 2012.

When the Kendall-Jackson wine team puts their eyes and palates on the best lots of wine off the best single estate vineyards, the end result always rocks. These Jackson Estate new releases are limited-production wines. They are special. This bright gold gem is intense, complex, packed to the brim with spicy, oak-infused fruit - apple, pineapple, mango and papaya. You can pick up cinnamon from the oak in the aromas. On the palate, it's rich and concentrated, like an essence of Chardonnay; it's lush with that creamy, smoky, vanilla crème brulee character to it. It's full-bodied braced with firm acidity. The grapes are off the hillside above the Santa Maria Bench in Santa Barbara - the premium blocks that Jackson Family Wines calls the Camelot Highlands Vineyard. The vines are 42 years old, so the berries are small and concentrated.

Made from grapes grown on 42-year-old vines, this complex chardonnay is loaded with tropical fruit flavors and a vanilla creme brulee finish.