2022 Joey Tensley, Fundamental Chardonnay, Central Coast, California, USA

2022 Joey Tensley, Fundamental Chardonnay, Central Coast, California, USA

Product: 20228162829
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Prices start from £23.00 per bottle (75cl). Buying options
2022 Joey Tensley, Fundamental Chardonnay, Central Coast, California, USA

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Available for delivery or collection. Pricing includes duty and VAT.

Description

The 2022 Chardonnay is a tasty, value-oriented wine. Orchard fruit, lime, white flowers and pineapple are nicely delineated in this budget-friendly offering from Joey Tensley.

Drink 2024 - 2026

Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (August 2024)

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Critics reviews

Antonio Galloni, Vinous89/100

The 2022 Chardonnay is a tasty, value-oriented wine. Orchard fruit, lime, white flowers and pineapple are nicely delineated in this budget-friendly offering from Joey Tensley.

Drink 2024 - 2026

Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (August 2024)

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Wine Advocate90/100

The 2022 Fundamental Chardonnay has gregarious aromas of baked yellow apples, allspice, toast, charcuterie and flinty streaks. The medium-bodied palate has a silky texture and focused acidity to support its full, ripe, spicy flavours, and it has a long, flavorful finish.

Drink 2024 - 2029

Erin Brooks, Wine Advocate (December 2023)

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About this WINE

Tensley Wines

Tensley Wines

Joey Tensley discovered wine at the age of 12 during a soccer trip to Bordeaux. He started making wine in 1993 at 22 and set up his own Tensley brand in 1998, spending the next 20 years finessing his craft with vintages in Chile, Argentina, Spain, and the Rhône Valley. Joey had already discovered a particular passion for Syrah and had started his own production in Santa Barbara with the mindset to create great quality and affordable wines from Rhône varieties.

He has since extended his range, producing exciting top-quality Syrah from single vineyards with excellent cellaring potential under the Tensley label, as well as brilliant and affordable Rhône blends, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon for drinking now under his Fundamental label.

Joey’s approach is simple: he works with great fruit from the best growers in the Central Coast and is as ‘hands-off’ as possible in the winery with minimum use of oak and sulfur. In 2016, he purchased 16 acres of his only estate vineyard, Colson Canyon, which lies above the all-important fog line, from which he had already been buying grapes to make his flagship cuvée since 2000.

Known as the King of Syrah, Joey Tensley has become renowned for his expertise with this variety, gaining a long list of accolades and high scores from critics such as Robert Parker. Today, he is widely recognized as one of the foremost winemakers in California. His wines reflect his thoughtful, laid-back approach and demonstrate a mineral purity that is quite exceptional for this region, especially at these price points.

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Central Coast AVA

Central Coast AVA

The Central Coast of California is one of the state’s most dynamic and diverse wine regions, spanning from the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area to Santa Barbara County. With over 100,000 acres of vineyards, the region encompasses notable areas like Monterey County and Paso Robles, each with unique characteristics.

Its proximity to the Pacific Ocean significantly influences its climate, with cool coastal breezes and fog moderating temperatures. This allows for slower ripening, preserving acidity and producing well-balanced wines. The diversity of microclimates, from the cool coastal zones of Santa Lucia Highlands to the warmer inland areas of Paso Robles, supports a wide array of grape varieties.

The region is celebrated for both cool- and warm-climate grape varieties. Cool-climate grapes like Chardonnay and Pinot Noir thrive in Santa Barbara and Santa Lucia Highlands. Chardonnay here ranges from crisp green apple to lush tropical fruit flavours, while Pinot Noir is known for its elegant red berry, earth, and spice notes. Warmer regions like Paso Robles excel with bold reds, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel. These wines are often full-bodied, showcasing dark fruit, spice, and oak influences, with Rhône-style blends being a particular highlight.

Several subregions stand out for their unique contributions to Central Coast winemaking. With its transverse valleys that funnel cool ocean air inland, Santa Barbara County is renowned for producing world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, particularly in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. Paso Robles, a warmer inland area, is famous for its robust reds and diverse Rhône blends, supported by its 11 sub-AVAs. Monterey County benefits from strong coastal influences, producing excellent cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, while the rugged Santa Cruz Mountains yield high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

The Central Coast is also a hub for winemaking innovation. Many producers experiment with small-batch production, non-traditional blends, and sustainable practices, including organic and biodynamic farming. This approach aligns with the growing consumer demand for environmentally conscious wine production. The region’s laid-back culture further enhances its appeal, offering visitors a welcoming and authentic connection to the land and the winemaking process.

Prominent wineries in the region include Tensley Wines, known for its commitment to sustainability, and Au Bon Climat in Santa Barbara, specialising in Burgundian-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

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Chardonnay

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or.

Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.

It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.

Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.

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When is a wine ready to drink?

We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.

Not ready

These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.

Ready - youthful

These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.

Ready - at best

These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.

Ready - mature

These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.