2019 Ojai Vineyard Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard Santa Maria Valley 750 ml

It’s been almost a decade since we’ve been able to offer an Ojai Chardonnay on Wine Access. Today, we’re sharing that honor with NYC’s three Michelin-starred Le Bernardin. Suffice it to say that the 2019 Ojai Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard wasn’t easy to secure—but for our members, locking it in should be a no-brainer.

Antonio Galloni of Vinous called the last vintage of Ojai’s Bien Nacido Chardonnay “sublime” in his 94-point review, and we expect the same or better from the 2019. After all, the fastidious Adam Tolmach, Ojai’s legendary founder and winemaker, told us himself that he is “particularly pleased with this vintage of Bien Nacido Chardonnay.” 

Offering up a majestic bouquet of acacia blossom, Asian pear, and honeycrisp apple layered with earth and spice, the 2019 Chardonnay is a testament to Tolmach’s golden touch and its extraordinary source, Santa Maria’s Bien Nacido Vineyard.

Named one of the “Top 25 Vineyards in the World” by Wine & Spirits, included among the “Top Five California Vineyards” by the Wall Street Journal, and considered one of “California’s Grand Cru Chardonnay Vineyards” by Wine Enthusiast, Bien Nacido is as good as it gets when it comes to Chardonnay growing sites. Tolmach recognized this way back in 1991, and has been harvesting grapes from the same block ever since. 

Located 20 miles from the Pacific Ocean on the northern end of the Santa Maria Valley AVA, Bien Nacido’s slopes sit on one of the few transverse mountain ranges in California. The gap between the mountains allows maritime morning fog and cool afternoon breezes to imbue the Chardonnay grapes with vivid fruit purity and saline freshness. The inimitable diversity of gravel, sandy marine loam, and calciferous clay soils add chiseled mineral elegance and earthy complexity.

Like its 94-point predecessor, the 2019 Bien Nacido Chardonnay was from a cool vintage in the Santa Maria Valley. “This was the key to the balance in the 2019,” Adam told us. Even for a naturally chilly site, the cooler-than-average year allowed grapes to stay on the vines just a little longer, developing full ripeness and bold flavors without losing any of the rippling tension that makes this such a mouthwatering joy to drink. 

The combination of one of California’s greatest vineyards and one of the state’s leading winemakers could easily have yielded a much steeper price tag—we wouldn’t blink at $50 for a wine that is so focused and speaks so deeply of place—but that isn’t Tolmach’s way. As Vinous wrote, Ojai wines “give consumers a terrific opportunity to explore the personalities of a number of top sites at prices that are exceedingly fair."