Steele

Sort By:

Steele 1997 Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Barbara County)

Price $28

There is wonderful fruit here, ranging from light citrus through mango, with a shaving of pineapple, fading into butterscotch, and layers upon layers of flavor on the finish. — L.W. (7/1/1999)

points

Steele 1998 Parmalee-Hill Vineyard Chardonnay (Sonoma Valley)

Price $26

Has intense, fine citrus and tropical-fruit aromas. Generously dosed with smoky oak. Drinks remarkably concentrated and intense, with huge spicy extract and great depth of flavor. Extremely complex, with a long, strong finish. — S.H. (2/1/2000)

points

Steele 1997 Goodchild Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Barbara County)

Price $24

Riper and more boldly flavored than the Parmalee-Hill Vineyard bottling, with masses of tropical-fruit aromas and flavors. Voluptuous and buttery. Amazing depth of flavor and complexity, it’s sheer deliciousness. — S.H. (2/1/2000)

points

Steele 1997 Sangiacomo Vyd Chardonnay (Carneros)

Price $24

This opens on a brilliant lemony note, then blossoms with its rich, textured, butterscotch center. As the wine opens in the glass, it takes on a richer character and depth. By the time you get to the last glass, you’ll wish the bottle had been a little bigger. — L.W. (6/1/1999)

points

Steele 1997 Durell Vyd Chardonnay (Carneros)

Price $26

An elegant wine with bright citrus fruit and a long, graceful finish that blossoms with layers of flavors that echo the opening fruit. — L.W. (6/1/1999)

points

Steele 1998 Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Barbara)

Price $30

One of seven wines we tasted from this renowned vineyard, and one of six from veteran Chard-meister Jed Steele. This one’s a beauty—the top scoring wine from both the winemaker and the site. A floral, orange, vanilla custard and almost mustardy-spice nose opens to a full orange, mineral and vanilla-spice palate. It’s rich and creamy yet spicy, and even shows some… — W.E. (7/1/2001)

points

Steele 2004 Du Pratt Vineyard Chardonnay (Mendocino Ridge)

Price $28

There aren’t a lot of wines coming off this appellation, and most of them are red. But this is a wonderful Chard. Ripe and detailed, it combines tropical fruit, mineral and oak flavors, and is dry and tart in acids. This is one of the few California Chardonnays I would age for up to ten years. — S.H. (12/15/2006)

points

Steele 2004 Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Barbara County)

Price $28

Plenty of richness here, mangoes, pineapple custard, Key lime pie, not to mention smoky, caramelly, butterscotchy oak, but there’s also a streamlined, sleek minerality that leaves a lip-smacking steely feeling behind. Part of that is acidity. Really fine wine. — S.H. (12/15/2006)

Most Reviewed Designations

Bien Nacido Vineyard Catfish Vineyard Clear Lake Dupratt Vineyard Durell Vineyard Goodchild Vineyard Lolonis Vineyard Parmalee-Hill Vineyard Parmelee Hill Vineyard Sangiacomo Vineyard Shooting Star

Most Reviewed Varietals

Cabernet Franc Cabernet Sauvignon Chardonnay Fumé Blanc Merlot Pinot Blanc Pinot Grigio Pinot Noir Riesling Syrah Viognier Zinfandel

2010 Mira Stanly Ranch

Winemaker Gustavo Gonzalez left Robert Mondavi to do his own thing, and…

(Sponsored)