Bonterra

BONTERRA CHARDONNAY VINTAGES ESSENTIALS 342436, $19.95

I often find a tantalizing liveliness in organic wines and it’s certainly here in this Chardonnay. Simultaneously creamy and tangy, it’s full of pear and red apple aromas with some subtle vanilla notes from time spent in a mixture of French and American oak barrels.

Bonterra’s vineyards in California’s Mendocino County have been farmed organically since 1987. They also own three ranches that are fully biodynamic, certified every year by Demeter, the world-wide biodynamic authority. “Soil is everything” is virtually the company’s motto and health is encouraged with cover crops between the rows of vines and by welcoming chickens and sheep there to aerate and fertilize the soil.