Chardonnay
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2026
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Roasted chicken, grilled salmon, creamy mushroom risotto
✨ Technical Specifications
Jim Clendenen, the legendary founder of Au Bon Climat, was a visionary who famously swam against the tide of ultra-ripe, heavily oaked California Chardonnays. Drawing deep inspiration from Burgundy, Clendenen championed a style focused on freshness, structure, and longevity. Sourced from cool-climate vineyards in Santa Barbara County, where the unique transverse mountain ranges pull cold maritime air directly from the Pacific Ocean, this Chardonnay captures the region's signature bright acidity. The wine is fermented and aged in French oak barrels with traditional lees stirring (bâtonnage), yielding a beautifully balanced profile of crisp citrus, stone fruit, and a subtle, creamy texture that honors Old World restraint in a New World terroir.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1982 by visionary vintner Jim Clendenen and Adam Tolmach, Au Bon Climat stands as one of California's most influential pioneers of cool-climate, Burgundian-style winemaking. Situated on the benchlands of the Santa Maria Valley and sourcing from iconic vineyards such as Bien Nacido, Sanford & Benedict, and the estate Le Bon Climat, the estate thrives within transverse valleys channeled by cold maritime airflow off the Pacific Ocean. Viticulture emphasizes sustainability, with key estate holdings certified organic. In the cellar, the late Clendenen's philosophy lives on through longtime winemaker Jim Adelman alongside Jim's children, Isabelle and Knox Clendenen. Vinification champions classical European restraint: whole-cluster pressing, native and selected yeast fermentations in François Frères French oak barrels, full lees contact, and unhurried elevage without excessive new wood or heavy extraction. Celebrated benchmark whites include the single-vineyard Bien Nacido K Block, Sanford & Benedict, and the flagship Chardonnay Nuits-Blanches Au Bouge, each exemplifying bright minerality, seamless acid architecture, and remarkable cellar longevity.
🍇 Grapes
Chardonnay
🍷 ABV
13.5%