Beverage of the Week (BOW)

Product Story

Tongue Dancer Wines Chardonnay Russian River Valley 2023 is a wine that we have been dying to tell you about. We first tasted it back in August (2025). Typically, this wine would have been released in the fall, but this wine required a bit of patience. It’s restrained yet opulent with layer after layer to discover in the glass. It’s very Burgundian. It's a blend from three vineyards: Bacigalupi (13.5%), Pratt Irwin Lane (47%), and Pratt Vine Hill (39%). From these great and familiar sources, several Chardonnay clones are present, including Old Wente, Mt. Eden, and Robert Young. This fourth release of their RRV Chardonnay is barrel-fermented with a judicious oak accent that never tramples on the delicious, nuanced fruit. It was bottled late in December 2024 and has been held at the winery since then, until now, March 2026. It’s stellar.

Brand Story

Tongue Dancer Wines is the creation of James and Kerry MacPhail. If you are a California Pinot Noir lover, you likely know James' previous work with MacPhail Family Wines. James knows how to make amazing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and James knows a lot of people who grow spectacular Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. We have been reviewing the wines from Tongue Dancer for the better part of a decade and have never seen a Tongue Dancer Wine fail to earn Four-Stars or better. Tongue Dancer constantly innovates, releasing new wines yearly while never missing a beat. Once, they surprised us by releasing a great, dry cider! This is a winery to watch. The wines are always in short supply, so be swift. Visit their website and join their mailing list to get direct access to their wines.