If you enjoy California chardonnay, you likely have Charles Wente and his children to thank for it.
Wente came to America in the 19th century. Upon arrival, he learned how to make wine from famed vintner Charles Krug. In 1883, he established a 47-acre estate and winery in the Livermore Valley, 45 miles east of San Francisco.
In 1908, Wente planted the first chardonnay vines in the valley. In 1912, Charles’s son, Ernest, a UC–Davis student, convinced his father to import chardonnay cuttings from a well-known vine nursery in France. Ernest picked vines that showed the best health and the best flavors, grafted them together, then continued to propagate and improve them.
Ernest propagated vines differently than others. While many selected for yields—the higher the better—Ernest focused on vines with very concentrated flavor and abundantly fruity berries. Flavor took precedence over yield.
The decision paid off. Ultimately, Wente developed the “Wente Clone” variety of chardonnay vines. Chardonnay makes up more than half of white wine acres in California, and more than 75% of all California chardonnay comes from the Wente Clone.
Today, Wente Vineyards, is the oldest continuously-operated, family-owned winery in the country. Wente enjoys the honor of being continuously-operated because they produced sacramental wines during Prohibition. After repeal of the Volstead Act, Ernest and his brother, Herman, released the nation’s first varietally-labeled chardonnay in 1936.
Others have built on the Wente foundation, but all acknowledge the Wente Clone is the basis of California-style chardonnay. Bold. Full-flavored. Fruit-driven. The concentrated juice also is well-suited for the use of new oak, a technique often used. California chards now come oaked and unoaked, and with and without malolactic fermentation. Doesn’t matter. Almost all the chardonnay grapes used to make the wine trace their lineage back to Charles Wente and his son Ernest.
Tasting notes
• Wente Vineyards Riva Ranch Chardonnay, Arroyo Seco, Monterey 2021: Smooth, rich. Excellent ripe, delicious fruit. $17-21 Link to my review
• Stags’ Leap Winery Chardonnay Napa Valley 2020: Impressive complexity, depth in oak-and-butter genre of Cali chards. Done with elegance and style. Very smooth, rich, fresh, clean. $20-28 Link to my review
• Textbook Chardonnay Napa Valley The Pey Family 2021: Pey family set out to make Napa wines that were “textbook Napa wines;” And this fits that definition. $22-27 Link to my review
• Gary Farrell Russian River Selection Chardonnay 2018: Fresh, tasty, silky-creamy, smooth, graceful. Nice equilibrium of superb fruit, acidity, oak nuances. Made with Wente Clone. $30-35 Link to my review
Last round: What do you call a duck that breaks into people’s houses? A robber ducky. Quak—wine time.