The 2006 Chardonnay Amphitheater Block comes from 27-year-old vines aged in about one-third new French oak. It is a gorgeous wine, with poached pear, caramelized peach and apricot notes, and background minerality. It is fresh, full-bodied, powerful, yet at the same time, elegant and long. This wine should drink well for another 5-6 years. These are superb Chardonnays. 2006 was a long, cool growing season in the Santa Cruz Mountains, without any of the botrytis problems for Chardonnay or Pinot that inflicted Carneros and the Russian River. Written up in the World’s Greatest Wine Values report in Issue 178, but still worth mentioning is the $16 Varner 2007 Foxglove Chardonnay from San Luis Obispo. It is an outstanding wine and easily one of the great values for Chardonnay in the marketplace. Tel. (650) 321-4894; Fax (650) 321-4893