“Le Rayon Vert”, the phenomenon which occurs as the sun dips below the horizon, and a brilliant green flash occurs when sunlight prisms through Earth’s atmosphere. Jules Verne wrote “a green which no artist could ever obtain on his palette, akin to the ethereal, green halo all truly pedigreed Chardonnays radiate from the glass.

The wine comes from two hillside sitesRichard Dinner and Steiner Vineyardthat reside on the slopes of Sonoma Mountain. A powerful terroir whose wines deliver impressive fruit character, while retaining dazzling acidity and verve.

Le Rayon Vert sings from the glass like a freshly opened stick of Wrigley’s gum.Both intense and vibrant, the full-bodied palate delivers Granny Smith apple and stone fruits; confections of custard and sticky vanilla bean; animated by bursts of spearmint and pine forest.

The Wine Independent 96/100

The 2020 Le Rayon-Vert comes bounding out of the glass with bold notions of lemon meringue pie, fresh apricots, and sea spray, giving way to nuances of struck flint, wet pebbles, and Marcona almonds, plus wafts of lime leaves and mandarin peel. The medium to full-bodied is simply electric, delivering super-intense citrus and mineral layers with a crisp backbone and a very long, chalky finish.