Medium gold color; baked apple, peach, pear, melon, lemon, vanilla, coconut, wood spice, caramel, butterscotch, crème brûlée on the nose and palate.
Dry (5.2 g/L RS); some oak tannins; appropriate acidity (3.69 pH; 5.2 g/L TA—numbers are for the 2021 vintage). Full body. Rich, creamy, round, opulent in the mouth; full malolactic conversion. Finished for six months exclusively in new American oak barrels sourced from eastern Minnesota and staves air dried for two years. Medium toast. Unlike some 1000 Stories efforts, no bourbon barrel aging, but the American oak influence is strong throughout.
This is finished only in American oak, which is different from several other 1000 Stories wines that spend time in both American and French oak, and a small amount—5%—in used and heavily charred bourbon barrels. American oak is more assertive than French oak and classically imparts vanilla, coconut, and sweet spice flavors to wine. Those flavors are present in this effort. The grapes largely come from Monterey’s cool-climate Arroyo Seco region. Fermented in mix of steel and barrel. Sebastain Donoso and Margaret Leonardi are the winemakers. 14.5% ABV
1000 Stories is owned by the Chilean wine giant Concha y Toro. Concha y Toro is the largest producer and exporter in Latin America and one of the top-ten wine companies in the world, selling more than 33 million cases in more than 135 countries. It owns vineyards in Chile, Argentina, and the United States. The winemaker has a long, deep commitment to responsibility and sustainability. In 2015, they were among the world’s first wineries to earn B Corp certification. In 2016, they were the world’s first to achieve True Zero Waste certification.
Continuing the feel-good, warm-fuzzy department, 1000 Stories features a bison on its label and actively supports the Wildlife Conservation Society’s efforts to increase the free-range bison herd in North America. The website states: “Wildlife Conservation Society has built a network of experts and strong relationships with ranchers and Native American tribes in an effort to restore natural habitats for the bison population. 1000 Stories proudly supports these efforts and works with WCS to develop programs to reintroduce bison into healthy environments where they may thrive and contribute to the ecosystems once again.”
1000 Stories American Barrel Aged Chardonnay 2022 is assertively oak-forward effort, creamy, full in the mouth. Aged in medium-toast new American oak for notes of caramel and butterscotch. It wisely avoids the pancake-makeup style of oak where the point is to mask inferior fruit. This is your pour if you enjoy creamy, plush, easy drinker at a nice price. $19-22
Pairing—Roast chicken, turkey with butter and cream sauces; chicken piccata with lemon-butter sauce. Pork loin, pork chops; pork tenderloin with herb crust and pan sauce. Fatty fish, shellfish; grilled or seared salmon; lobster with drawn butter; seared scallops in butter sauce. Roasted and caramelized vegetables; roasted cauliflower with brown butter and sage, mushroom risotto. Movie theater popcorn. Cheese—Soft-ripened cheeses; brie, camembert; triple-crème; Saint-André Brillat-Savarin, Délice de Bourgogne; aged gouda (18-36 months), smoked gouda; gruyère, comté, emmantal; fresh, mild goat cheese served with honey, fig jam.