Ceritas, Peter Martin Ray Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains

Some additional time in bottle did wonders for this wine. Pale golden color. Nose of lemon curd, lemon zest, green apple, wet stones, white florals and a touch of cream. Lovely. Similar flavors on the palate with a mineral streak on the finish. High acidity. Mouthwatering finish. Paired perfectly with baked crab cakes.

2016 vintage

Mid-gold color. Richer than usual profile. This got better on the second day open and needs to be drunk at cool room temperature. Leaner flavor profile with salt and chamomile notes. Bitter finish. Improved from last taste a couple years ago so maybe hold a bit longer, although I will drink my last two in a couple years.

2016 vintage

Keep hoping for a bit more depth but fine quality

2016 vintage

Tasting at Ceritas (Healdsburg, California) : Medium yellow. Toasty, low pitched fruit, and some secondary perfume. Mellow, dry tropical fruit, high acidity, some vanilla, and a touch of zesty citrus. Complex wine, not fruit driven. This really reminds me of Côte de Beaune Grand Cru in its breadth.

2016 vintage

Could use a touch more length here but otherwise showing well

2016 vintage

Sorta basic on opening. So most of it was ignored for a few hours, after which it opened up very nicely. In fact after corking half of it and trying it the next day it was better. Nose very flowery and the palate with some nice fruit, acidity, and minerality, with a bit of salinity that impressed on me being at the beach on a cool day.

2016 vintage

Not up to the usually lofty standards of Ceritas. Bouquet is very restrained but promises some richness and complexity which the palate unfortunately can’t deliver. Green apple and ocean salinity, almost devoid of interesting minerality. Might be bad bottle, will try another soon to verify.

2016 vintage

Excellent - great balance. I lack the vocabulary to describe the palate: light, savory-sweet (like caramel, or a dash of Sauternes), not fruit forward at all, stony, stone fruit pit? This Ceritas vineyard has always been the least penetrable for us, but evidently time is key. We loved it, and it’s in a great spot.

2016 vintage

A bit lean on opening. Needs to warm up before drinking. Darker golden yellow than expected but it certainly isn’t oxidized. Just not a lot of depth. I have had other vintages that were much better.

2016 vintage

Two years on from my last bottle which I described as a little lean, sharp and lacking some depth. It looks richer in colour which was a slight concern but it’s fine. Comes across as rich but with a real leaner freshness on the finish. Not sure I’m in love with it as it feels like an older pouilly Fuisse with a lean finish. Enjoyable enough and the bottle will be finished.

2016 vintage

Nope, it got better still.

2016 vintage

Found this a bit dominated by its acid. Give it another year or two and see where it’s at

2016 vintage

Saturday hangout (socially distanced) (Chicago, IL) : I've generally loved my experiences with the Ceritas chardonnays, but I have to admit that this bottle didn't quite do it for me. It's a little broader and fatter than I've come to expect from Ceritas; a hint of reduction and good minerality and decent acid, but just maybe a bit too oily and sweet this time around.

2016 vintage

I wanted to open a Ceritas bottle during Antonio’s interview with Ceritas winemaker John. I initially opened a 2015 Heintz Chardonnay, but it was corked. I moved to this bottle and it was intriguing to hear John say this is their earliest harvested vineyard, but their richest in profile wine. Crazy. Upon opening, it had a very thin finish. I think there was a two part reason: it was too cold and it needed more air. This got substantially better …

2016 vintage

Very light and somewhat lean with lemon and touch of bitter herbs. Opens up a bit and enjoyable though seems to lack some depth. A few people have said these really should have more years in bottle so ideally I’d like to try again in 3-4 years.

2016 vintage

Pale color. Very faint nose - citrusy with some yeasty notes. Taste is citrus over a predominant core of minerality. Noticeably acidic. Taste is reminiscent of oysters with lemon juice, but less saline. Very Burgundian in style.

2016 vintage

And time has treated it well. Just tremendous. Likely reached its prime. 13.3%

2016 vintage

High pleasant acid. Burgundy in the style

2016 vintage

Pale yellow color. A bit tight on the nose with some fresh lemon and green apple notes coming through along with a bit of chalk dust. Similar flavors on the palate with mostly lemon and citrus notes and barely a touch of oak influence. Medium+ acid, well balanced but missing a little of that Ceritas signature for me. Might be slightly shut down? Will let my remaining bottle go a few more years before retrying.

2016 vintage

Light yellow. Bright, clean lemon fruit. Crisp minerality. A relatively unique style of California Chardonnay. Very tasty, a great food wine.

2016 vintage

The excellent sommelier at Racines in NY ( a real wine lovers gem) raved at about and we see the charm of it but not to the level reached by the Escarpa Pinot 2012 we tried from Ceritas ( also somm suggestion and Papies 93-94) Old world in a way but with softer acidity, light sweeter fruit touches, chamomile on the nose, soft honey edge. A very solid 90

2016 vintage

Very old world chablis like smooth and mellow enjoyable fruit and terroir show through

2016 vintage

Incredibly smooth, potentially some pear. Light.

2016 vintage

Opened for 2 h. Nicely expressive aromas of tart apples, lemon/lime aromas with slight hint of honeysuckle and cashew nuts. Tart apples, meyer lemon, slight hint of minerals. Excellent acids with a creamy mouthfeel. Finishes with a nice grapefruit bitterness. Wish there was more minerality, depth of flavor, and texture to balance the creaminess. Still a nice drink though.

2016 vintage

PnP’ed. Nice minerally flavor, some citrus. Good mouthfeel. Paired well with tuna crudo and halibut. Not that enjoyable without food, some time in the bottle will probably take care of that.

2016 vintage

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Ceritas, Peter Martin Ray Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains

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