My top 30: California whites

There's a new wave of quality coming out of the Golden State, enthuses Ronan Sayburn MS. Here he recommends 30 of the best of the current crop among California's whites

There’s far more to California white than Chardonnay, shows Ronan Sayburn MS, with this eclectic selection of his favourite bottles

California has definitely seen a rollercoaster ride of changing styles and tastes over the last few decades. in the 1980s when

phylloxera returned, completely devastating vines planted on AXR1 rootstocks, a rethink

and replanting programme turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as grape varieties were matched to more suitable sites. At a similar

time, powerful critics were influencing winemaking styles, and California producers were moving into huge, oaky, high-alcohol wines – the bigger the better, when it came to chasing higher scores. Jump forward to 2004 and the wine-themed movie Sideways was released, promoting elegant and ethereal Pinot Noir, when in reality many in California were making brutish Pinot that was more akin to Syrah. Perhaps the time for change was coming… The Us is the fourth largest producer of wines in the world, with the majority made in California. While mainstream markets, both in the Us and the rest of the world, may have a taste for the richer, riper style of wines, with some residual sugar, oak and warm alcohol, here i want to showcase a selection of wines more likely to be of interest to Decanter readers, from established names who have always valued elegance and finesse over power, and from a new wave of producers who share the same philosophy.

Chardonnay is the most widely planted white variety. flavour-wise it’s the chicken of the wine world – a blank canvas that winemakers are free to write upon. To oak, semi-oak or not to oak at all, to allow partial or full malolactic fermentation, or to add richness and texture by lees stirring – these are all factors a winemaker has to consider in choosing whether to create a Chablisien style of high acidity, no oak and minerality, or a full-blown, buttery, vanilla, textured style.

Coastal sonoma and santa Barbara County are certainly the standout areas for the linear, mineral-driven, refined styles of Chardonnay. Elegant and tight, they deliver flavours that would make a Burgundian proud.

sauvignon Blanc, the second most-planted white grape variety, is now coming into its own, showing great potential in high-altitude, mountainous areas of Napa, and moving away from very ripe, tropical fruits and closer to the leaner Bordelaise styles of gently oaked, floral wines. A diverse mix of italian, spanish and Austrian varieties are also becoming popular, along with traditional plantings of Rhône varieties in the Central Coast.

Elevated prices are, sadly, a feature common to many of these wines; high costs of labour and land – and perhaps ego – are typical reasons that lie behind some hefty pricing.

A discernible and welcome change is apparent in the way that many winemakers in California are operating. Critics’ scores today have a lot less impact than in the past; skilled winemakers are buying carefully selected fruit from good growers; and, in terms of style, there is a clear shift away from power, mainstream and manipulation towards elegance, eclectic and minimum intervention. overall, this is a very exciting time for Californian wines.