2015 Hoopes Chardonnay, Genny’s Vineyard and Fresh Swordfish
Hoopes Vineyard has a great tagline with a picture of the dog jumping thru the hoop being “In Dogged Pursuit of Perfect Wines”. From my perspective it could be “we will jump thru hoops to make your experience enjoyable”. Known for their Cabernet Sauvignon’s, I previously picked up a couple of bottles of their 2015 Carneros Chardonnay and it was excellent! Winemakers Ann Vawter and Jennifer Rue, found a vineyard in Carneros called Genny’s Vineyard. Carneros is an area heavily influence by the maritime coolness from San Pablo Bay. It also has very shallow soil. Thus the vineyard has a low yield with small berry size. It does produce a desirable and distinctive character in which to make Chardonnay. The wine is made in 100% French oak barrels, with 33% being new. It is aged 10 months Sur Lie. They only produce 146 cases of Chardonnay. On the eye, a bright almost glistening golden straw color and medium to medium heavy viscosity. On the nose, pineapple, pear and honeysuckle. On the palate, French pastry and vanilla crème brûlée produce a fullness not normally found in many Chardonnay’s. The pear and green apple produce a wonderful and long lasting finish.
As we headed out for dinner (knowing a fish special was being offered), I pulled the 2015 Hoopes Chardonnay from the cellar. Paired last evening at Copper Valley’s Vine18 restaurant with a special swordfish offering. The swordfish was served with a pineapple medley, baked potato and fresh string beans. The pineapple medley and flavors in the Hoopes Chardonnay were a perfect match. Perhaps with the exception of several winemaker dinners, this was the best meal that Copper Valley Golf Club has produced! 3 out of 4 of us selected the special swordfish offering and it was cooked to perfection and plated very elegantly. All of us gave kudos to Executive Chef Albert Sandoval and George Lee, General Manager for providing this special offering.
For dessert, we skipped the various pastries and sweets and had a delicious Freemark Abbey 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon!
Sláinte,
Michael
https://californiawinesandwineries.com
California Wines & Wineries 
October 3, 2021 at 7:52 pm
[…] week before special swordfish, nothing could be as good! We were wrong! Read previous story at: https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2021/09/25/2015-hoopes-chardonnay-gennys-vineyard-and-fresh-s… and here is the […]
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