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Open 11:00am-4:00pm
Appt required? No
Last barlinwine.com visit: 2011
Directions:
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Tasting:
In 2000, I was out at a work dinner. Still a young pup and wet behind the ears when it came to wine, I had my first sip of Chalk Hill Chardonnay. And it was delicious. It opened my eyes to the difference between what I'll call "supermarket wine" (although, ironically, you can get Chalk Hill at my local Dominick's) and something that could be better, and in some ways it started my current affinity for fine wine. Considering all of that, it's surprising that it took me 11 years before I finally made it to the winery to taste.
Chalk Hill is not the type of winery I typically frequent these days. It's big, commercial, widely distributed, and fairly well known, all things that usually add up to tour buses, limos, and a lot of first-timers in wine country -- basically the equivalent of the $5 blackjack table in Vegas, and mostly what I look to avoid these days. The winery is located on Chalk Hill Road, and their estate spans something in the neighborhood of 1300 acres. They grow most of the major grape varietals you would expect to find in California and produce wines featuring most of them. The tasting room is a beautiful stone structure mounted on a hilltop overlooking their property. But despite all of that, the tasting room is relatively small, and we had a personal, intimate tasting at the winery.
We started our tasting with their Sauvignon Blanc. Crisp and clean, but nothing to write home about. We moved to their Pinot Gris, a wine that they produce only for restaurants and club members. This was a better, more complex version of the Sauv. Blanc, but still not amazing. We finished our tour of white wine with the aforementioned Chardonnay. Buttery and multi-layered, I still do enjoy this wine. But with the ability to pick it up locally, I was more interested in what else they had to offer.
We moved to reds, starting with the 2006 Estate Cabernet. This is another wine that is widely distributed, and while good, not better than its Alexander Valley counterparts. We then tried the 2007 Estate Red, Chalk Hill's Bordeaux Blend. At last -- just what I was waiting for! This was a well-made wine from a great year, and it was my favorite of the visit. We followed this with the Clara's Vineyard Cabernet, another Bordeaux style wine heavier on Cabernet. This was similar and softer than the 2007 Estate Red, but a wine that was missing just a little something for me. Our tasting finished with a sample of their Botrytised Semillon dessert wine, which was quite good.
Throughout the tasting, our host was cordial and attentive. The atmosphere was far more laid-back than I expected coming in, capped by a visit from Bonnie, a black German Shepherd at the end of our taste. I stayed just long enough to get her riled up and crazy for her owner before hitting the road. We left with a positive impression of the vineyard and a sense that this is a place I would recommend people head to for a solid tasting experience. This was a good one-time visit, and while I suspect I'll visit again some day, ultimately neither the wine nor the experience was unique enough to keep me coming back every time I'm in the area.
Chalk Hill is not the type of winery I typically frequent these days. It's big, commercial, widely distributed, and fairly well known, all things that usually add up to tour buses, limos, and a lot of first-timers in wine country -- basically the equivalent of the $5 blackjack table in Vegas, and mostly what I look to avoid these days. The winery is located on Chalk Hill Road, and their estate spans something in the neighborhood of 1300 acres. They grow most of the major grape varietals you would expect to find in California and produce wines featuring most of them. The tasting room is a beautiful stone structure mounted on a hilltop overlooking their property. But despite all of that, the tasting room is relatively small, and we had a personal, intimate tasting at the winery.
We moved to reds, starting with the 2006 Estate Cabernet. This is another wine that is widely distributed, and while good, not better than its Alexander Valley counterparts. We then tried the 2007 Estate Red, Chalk Hill's Bordeaux Blend. At last -- just what I was waiting for! This was a well-made wine from a great year, and it was my favorite of the visit. We followed this with the Clara's Vineyard Cabernet, another Bordeaux style wine heavier on Cabernet. This was similar and softer than the 2007 Estate Red, but a wine that was missing just a little something for me. Our tasting finished with a sample of their Botrytised Semillon dessert wine, which was quite good.
Recommended wine: The 2007 Estate Red was very good. I have a soft spot for their Chardonnay, and given its distribution it's a solid mid-range Chardonnay that you can likely find at any wine store.
Ratings (out of 5):
 WINE | 4.00 |  TASTING ROOM | 4.50 |
 ATMOSPHERE | 4.50 |  VALUE | 3.50 |
 OVERALL | 4.13 | ||
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