Freemark Abbey Napa Valley Chardonnay 2004 ($20): My husband, the wine critic, is constantly giving me grief because I 
actually enjoy a California Chardonnay now and then. True, we wine critics like to bash Chardonnay–and as a category, it deserves bashing for the excesses of sweetness, high alcohol, and winemaking manipulations that exist. But when a Chardonnay is not too big and not too oaky, it can be utterly enjoyable (to some of us, at least).
I stuck my nose into the glass of 2004 Freemark Abbey Chardonnay and time-travelled more than 20 years back to my early experiences with California Chardonnays. I recalled wines like a 1979 Santa Ynez Valley Winery Chardonnay that I sipped with same not-yet husband over a romantic dinner at Windows on the World. The aroma of this Freemark Abbey was almost indescribable, and it struck a chord. Oak, certainly, but in the sweetest, most seductive way, and apples, slightly baked as if in a succulent apple pie. What’s not to like?
Freemark Abbey Chardonnay is something of a forgotten classic. 
As other Chardonnays have grown bigger, richer and riper, winemaking director Ted Edwards and winemaker Tim Bell have held the line. This wine does not go through malolactic fermentation and therefore has enough acidity to be light on its feet; as another effect, its aromas and flavors are not dampened by the ML muting process. In fact, the wine’s fresh acidity conspires to accentuate the apple aromas and flavors. The wine definitely tastes oaked in its vanilla and smoke character, but it is not overly oaky. It is full-bodied as a Chardonnay should be, but not too big, and it manages to have soft texture despite its crispness, without the bite of high alcohol that mars many a Chardonnay for me.
This is the least expensive of three Chardonnays that Freemark Abbey makes. The winery is also known for its red wines: two Cabernet Sauvignon single-vineyard wines, the Bosché and Sycamore Vineyard. The winery has changed ownership in the past few years, and I am happy to see that the wine has survived the ordeal.
If you’re planning to serve this wine, don’t think of it as a typical full-throttle California Chardonnay. It’s more delicate and fine-boned than that. It doesn’t need to be very cold, because its alcohol doesn’t need that straightjacket. And it can accompany food better than an excessive California Chardonnay. I like it in a medium-sized glass with a tulip-shaped bowl, and I like it with veal or chicken fillets, grilled or sautéed. As I taste it, my mind also conjures up thoughts of grilled Italian sausages.
Did you notice the price? In my perfect world, this wine would command a higher price–except that in my perfect world, most Chardonnays would taste like this one.
90 Points