Poe, Ferrington Vineyard Chardonnay, Anderson Valley

This is a very good but young chardonnay. Moderate acidity with white fruit and citrus. Excellent balance and smoothness. No intrusive oak, but no austere sharpness either. I call it middle of the road, but not in a bad way. In a very good way. It's an honest wine, not a wine trying to be something.

POE is a new-comer on the scene, aside from the striking packaging, it's a really lovely Chardonnay from Ferrington Vineyard in Anderson Valley. The nose is redolent with dewy Asian pear, lemon curd, almond cake and spice. Clean and balanced on the palate, with soft texture intersecting layers of acid and toasty French oak. Medium-plus finish.

Drank next to the 2008 Fevre Les Clos, which provided a very cool contrast. The Poe rings similar to the Fevre in that both shows a lemon note, with the Poe carrying this through to the finish. Where Sam's wine here differs from the Fevre is that the new-er world aspects come forward, in the form of the fruit and oak exhibiting a lemon brulee feel, along with mint in the finish. Where the Fevre is marine, the Poe is …

Dinner with Friends (FMIII in the OC) : Golden color. Sweet tree fruit nose. Palate shows classic California Chardonnay and lemon then wraps a fair amount of Carmel heading into the finish. Won't be confused for a Chablis, that's ok because it paired perfectly with the parmigiana bowl holding the salad. Awesome combination.

Absolutely love this wine. Fresh, crisp. Citrus flavors good snap of acidity. Not too buttery.

Opened last night, kept cool in the fridge overnight only. Drinking at a bit lower than room temp. Reminds me a little of Rivers-Marie, maybe a bit richer with a little less lemon, more brulee-like with yellow apple, suave texture, a spicy/fennel note in the finish with a stony note. What distinguishes the wine at this stage is the finish length, as it remains in the palate for a long space. The acid on the wine is moderate but what …

Drank with Cioppinno. Started too warm and chilled in the ice box and second glass worked much better a little cooler. Nice chard, not over oaked at all and not one of those Cali Chards that I hate. Thanks Sam!

Much more rich/ripe than I was expecting. Tropical fruits dominate the palate with an almost wooly/chenin texture to it. A winner from a deliciousness standpoint and would probably be a real crowd favorite, but I was expecting a little sharper fruit and more acidity ala chablis given its AV address. This is not a knock at all and drinks very clean and enjoyable with no trace of oak or buttery flavors. Reminds me of a Rivers/Marie Thieriot.

Pop and pour and served with food (pate, bread and cheese). Good color with golden hue. Wonderful nose of bright lemon and fresh apricot. The wine is rich in flavor but light on its feet, showing wonderful balance and elegance. Quite impressive. Added note for context: The wine was tasted first, followed by a 1997 Chappellet Napa Cabernet, a 1999 Alvaro Palacios Les Terrasses (Priorat), and a 2006 Jean Edwards Napa Cabernet. I went back to the Chardonnay and it …