Tongue Dancer Wines Bacigalupi Vineyard Chardonnay Russian River Valley 2023

The Data

Country USA

Appellation Russian River Valley

Varietal Chardonnay

Retail Price $55

ABV 13%

Score 4.5 Stars/96 points

In the Glass

Appearance

Brilliant, medium gold color.

Aromatics

The aromatics are intense, offering scents of mango, honeysuckle, and jasmine with supporting notes of lychee, citrus zest, bees wax, and apricot stone.

Flavor

The palate echoes the nose, delivering a ripe orchard fruit-driven core with flavors of white peach, star fruit, lemon curd, and oak. The finish is long and lingering.

Intensity & Texture

Medium-bodied and perfectly balanced with an opulent texture.

Cool Factor

Tongue Dancer's ninth release of their Bacigalupi Chardonnay is an eccentric beauty with a touch of mystery, making it certified cool. Chardonnay can be cool!

Value Grade

Year after year, these wines from Tongue Dancer Wines deliver value. Superior fruit and winemaking skills conspire to make outstanding wines made in small quantities — Bravo!

Analysis

The 2023 vintage marks the ninth edition of Tongue Dancer Wines’ superb Bacigalupi Vineyard Chardonnay. This wine is consistently fantastic, but the 2023 vintage is surely out of character. This wine is typically rich and opulent, but due to the cold weather in 2023, its many gifts were delivered in a subtle, restrained package, and we absolutely love it. In 2023, we can hear the viola and oboe playing their parts perfectly, allowed to shine as the typically bombastic brass and percussion obscure their contributions. The grapes were all hand-picked and sorted in the field. Like previous vintages, the 2023 Bacigalupi Chardonnay is completely barrel-fermented and undergoes malolactic fermentation, creating an opulent texture. The wine was then rested sur lie for 15 months in French oak (20% new). This wine for the ages is made entirely at their Grapewagon Crush facility in Healdsburg.

How to Enjoy

Serve chilled but not too cold, or you will suppress the subtle nuances abundant in this wine. Pair it with fowl in a tarragon cream sauce.