The Judge 2023 comes from a cool, late-ripening Napa year, which gave Kongsgaard's hilltop Chardonnay a more restrained, mineral profile than usual. Vinous scored it 97 and marked it as a wine for the cellar.
About This Wine
Antonio Galloni found the 2023 less opulent than The Judge can be, with the cool season clearly on display: clean mineral notes cutting through candied citrus and floral tones, and signs of weight and potential emerging with air. His drinking window runs from 2027 to 2038. The winery's own note on the 2023 describes the wine as both subtle and very intense, and says The Judge, John's father, would have turned 103 that year.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Candied lemon and orange peel with white flowers and a clear, stony mineral note.
- Palate: Tight and powerful, with citrus fruit, hidden weight and fresh acidity.
- Finish: Long and focused, with a saline, chalky finish.
Serving & Food
This needs time. Cellar it until around 2027, or if opening now, decant for an hour and serve at 12 to 14°C in a large Burgundy glass. Match with langoustines, sole in brown butter or chicken in vin jaune.
How to Enjoy
A young Judge to cellar for the coming decade.
Product Details
Producer: Kongsgaard
Country: USA
Region: Napa Valley, California
Cuvée: The Judge
Vintage: 2023
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
ABV: 14.1%
Volume: 750mL
About the Winery
Kongsgaard makes very little of The Judge: typically 8 to 15 barrels from the estate vineyard, grown on old Wente-clone vines first planted in 1975. Yields rarely go above a ton per acre.
Most of the wine goes to the winery's mailing list and to a few restaurants. The rest of the range is also small, which lets John, Alex and Evan Frazier do the work in the cellar themselves, as the family has always intended.