From:
Napa Valley, Calif.
Price:
$45-$50
Serve with:
Salmon, chicken in buttery sauce
Sorry, budget buyers, this one is for the splurgers. Chateau Montelena Chardonnay is a consistent American classic — the wine that outshone the best of France back in 1976 and still stellar today. It's one of the few American chardonnays that can age a decade. This vintage is superbly balanced and complex, with a perfect marriage of fruit and oak. The flavors are no surprise — lemon, apple, vanilla, nuts — but the absolute harmony is always impressive. Even a chardo-skeptic has to bow reverently before this monument to the heights this oft-abused grape can achieve in the right vineyard and expert hands.