Goodfellow Family Cellars Chardonnay, Willamette Valley '23

Over the last couple of months, we have included a wide range of wines from Goodfellow Family Cellars in our wine clubs.

I’ve saved the “best” for last.

As a refresher, Goodfellow Family Cellars is the small Willamette Valley winery owned by my longtime friend Marcus Goodfellow. Marcus and I met during my years living in Oregon, and I have been following his wines from the beginning. He is based in McMinnville, Oregon, and produces around 4,000 cases of wine annually, sourcing fruit from some of the finest sustainably farmed, non-irrigated vineyards throughout the Willamette Valley.

When Marcus and I were both getting started in the wine business, the wines that excited us most were those from the Old World. Not just the wines of Burgundy, but also those of Italy, Germany, and beyond.

While Oregon is certainly its own place, with its own soils and climate, Marcus has masterfully developed a Chardonnay program that even the most hard-core white Burgundy collectors appreciate and buy.

While the single-vineyard Chardonnays are among the most exciting white wines being produced in Oregon, this Willamette Valley bottling may be the wine that best demonstrates Marcus’s talent. It is sourced primarily from Whistling Ridge, Durant, and Tsai, many of the same vineyards used for his more limited single-vineyard wines. The fruit is whole-cluster pressed, fermented with native yeast, and aged on its lees with restrained use of oak.

Marcus bottled the 2023 earlier than his normal Chardonnay program, aiming for a prettier, more energetic wine with less influence from extended lees aging. At just 11.6% alcohol, it has remarkable brightness and precision, with notes of yellow apple, pear, lemon zest, underripe nectarine, almond, fresh herbs, and a distinct stony quality. Only 175 cases were produced.

This is probably the best-value Chardonnay you can find, regardless of country. This special offer will not last long, so get some while you can. Serve it with grilled halibut, roast chicken, or simply enjoy a bottle on a warm summer evening.