Sphaerics pt 1

 I am excited to have my first sampling of wines from this new label. 

Sphaerics is a project by my former boss, Brian Ball, now GM at Skipstone, and wife Laura Jones, Skipstone winemaker since 2022. 

Laura was assistant winemaker for 5 years at Aubert. She has also gained experience at Cliff Lede and Domaine Armand Rousseau in Gevrey-Chambertin.

Their first release in 2022 garnered high praise from Jeb Dunnuck, Owen Bargreen and Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and as an ardent Chardonnay fan, I was anxious to get to try the wine. 

I got two of the wines from the 2023 vintage and am first exploring here, the 2023 Overline, from Carneros. 

It has a focused nose of fruit, unencumbered by loads of new oak and malolactic influence. There is a lovely briny quality along with noticeable minerality over lifted floral notes and aromas of nectarine, white peach and Mandarin orange with whiffs of white pepper. 

It has a racy entry with excellent acidity to accompany a lithe texture and plenty of verve and tension. This is definitely crafted with deference to a more Burgundian "architecture" achieving ripeness without being heavy or leaning too into tropical flavors and lushness, but with plenty of freshness and vibrancy. 

It is youthful, but already shows plenty of stone fruit character lifted by lemon and Buddah's hand zest with a slightly chalky undertone and a tinge of meringue-like sweetness that amplifies the fruit character. It's a gorgeous wine, deftly balanced in its delicacy and restraint. 

This is a wine I can readily and enthusiastically recommend to folks who love a leaner, fruit-forward style of Chardonnay that provides lusciousness without becoming flabby or simply, good Burgundy.