Diatom Santa Barbara Chardonnay 2024 - 750ml

94pts Jeb Dunnuck

Based on 100% Chardonnay and aged six months in stainless steel vats, the 2024 Chardonnay has a medium to light gold hue and offers exotic citrus, minty herbs, and subtle tropical flower notes that all define this clean, crisp, remarkably pure Chardonnay. It puts on weight and richness with time in the glass and is a terrific mix of both richness and freshness. This is a no-brainer purchase for those who love Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, and I love its purity.

93pts Wine Spectator - #18 Top 100 of 2025

This white’s sleek mix of ripe pear, ginger and pomelo flavors show striking restraint, coiled around a mouthwatering thread of acidity. Details of lime zest, white peppercorn and dried tarragon linger, along with a whiff of sea spray.

93pts James Suckling

This has a succulent texture, remaining pure and long throughout. Salinity, minerals and springtime blossoms stay taut alongside lemons and crunchy orchard fruit with a lingering kick of tactile melon pith.

92pts Wine Enthusiast

Oyster shell, honeydew rind, lime candy and grass aromas make for a complex, zesty nose on this bottling. The palate is zippy and grassy as well, almost like a Sauv Blanc, showing brisk lime zest flavors.

90pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2024 Chardonnay opens with a textbook bouquet of green orchard fruits, sea spray and spice-driven undertones, accompanied by a honeyed backdrop. The palate is supple, polished and lifted by a high-toned, cleansing quality that carries through the straightforward, saline-tinged finish.

Winemaker Notes

Aromas of lemon, citrus blossom and wet sand with flavors of saline and white peach. It is precise and balanced.

About the Winery

Diatom specializes in only one variety—Chardonnay— and is motivated by the pursuit of subtraction and refinement. Fermented at low temperatures in small stainless-steel tanks, coupled with inhibited malolactic fermentation and short hose transportation, diatom intends to capture Chardonnay in its most raw, carnal state. Winemaker Greg Brewer strives to imbue recognition of place with as little disturbance, distraction or interference as possible. The resulting wines have a sense of transparency and a purity of intent and purpose.