Guarachi Chardonnay Sun Chase Vineyard Petaluma Gap Sonoma Coast 2019
Chardonnay | US
You know our deep affinity with the Guarachi wines. Alex’s story is amazing, and his years of working with top vineyards and winemakers (Paul Hobbs for many years and now Paul’s longtime assistant Julian Gonzalez) and his total commitment to the pure, hedonistic style of the best of Sonoma is a joy to behold.
Sun Chase Vineyard is Sonoma royality. Overlooking Gap's Crown in the Petaluma Gap, its wind swept, high elevation perch is the source for some of the best pinot and chardonnay money can buy. Alex keeps his favorite rows for his own project and sells the rest of the fruit to a world-class roster including Carte Blanche (of Chateau Haut-Brion), Carter and Bevan. The result is a powerful, polished wine with everything you have come to expect from a luxury $60+ bottle of California chardonnay - glorious oak integration, tropical and expressive, wonderfully textured and mouthcoating with freshening acidity and great floral lift through the finish.
This 93-pointer just landed and it is SINGING. Mouthcoating, yet never heavy, this feels like you’re totally treating yourself. And you SHOULD. From the much-coveted Sun Chase vineyard, this beautiful white teams with lemon/lime, grilled pineapple, butterscotch and honey, and all beautifully in balance, too. IRRESISTIBLE.
For this price? It seems…almost…wrong! But we love it! ONLY 25 CASES!
About the Producer
"Alex Guarachi is owner of Guarachi Family Wines and founder of Guarachi Wine Partners (formally TGIC Global Fine Wine Company).
Alex came to the United States on a soccer scholarship from his native country, Chile. However, when an injury shattered his athletic dreams, he went back to his roots to find new aspirations. While living in the backyard of Napa Valley and Sonoma County – where South American wines had previously been unknown – Alex saw an opportunity. He endeavored, against all odds, to carve out a share of the American wine market for the extraordinary wines from his home country. As a result, he began the uphill journey of entrepreneurship and started importing Chilean wines into Napa and Sonoma. Behind every successful business is a struggle and this was no exception. Alex started working out of his very own garage and performed every little (and large) task himself. He was the order taker, the warehouse manager, the salesman and even the truck driver in an attempt to gain recognition and put his foot in the door. Despite the challenges that he faced, Alex forged his company into a leading importer, marketer, and producer of fine wines.
Guarachi Wine Partners became one of the first importers of Chilean and Argentine wines and has grown exponentially to represent wines from around the world. It is now the second largest importer of South American wines and in 2010 was honored as Importer of the Year by Wine Enthusiast Magazine's prestigious Wine Star Awards.
In 2007, after 22 years of serving as the founder and president of GWP, Alex Guarachi poured his passion for building wine brands into his own high end & boutique label, Guarachi Family Wines, with well-crafted and limited bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley and Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast. It has since expanded with the acquisition of prestigious estate vineyards, such as Meadowrock in the Atlas Peak appellation of Napa Valley and Sun Chase overlooking Gap’s Crown in the Sonoma Coast Petaluma Wind Gap.
Alex serves as a testament to the American dream. The living embodiment of what one person can accomplish with an idea and the will to create something for himself and a legacy for his family."
- BlendChardonnay
- WinemakerJulian Gonzalez
- CountryUS
- RegionCalifornia North Coast
- AppellationPetaluma Gap, Sonoma
- VineyardSun Chase Vineyard
- Aging/CooperageAged 11 months in 100% French oak
- Alcohol14.8%