Review: Cline North Coast Viognier

There are some wine brands I come across often at stores, suggesting they have good distribution and produce a large volume of wine. Because of that apparent scale, it can be easy to think of these brands as coming from giant wine factories that don’t have much of a story behind them and just churn out massive amounts of product. In some cases that may be an accurate, but in other cases there’s more of a story behind the brand than meets the eye.

Cline Family Cellars is one of those producers who I see widely available in stores and if I didn’t look into them I likely wouldn’t realize the interesting stories behind them. And with Cline, there’s a lot of depth to their story. For example, it’s a family-owned winery, with a rich family history connected to world-famous Jacuzzi spas, and they’re a leader in sustainable farming practices.

One part of their history that intrigued me today is that back in the 1980’s Fred Cline was one of the early members of the Rhone Rangers, a group of American wine producers focused on producing wines with Rhone varieties. While I don’t believe Cline Cellars is currently affiliated with the Rhone Rangers organization, they still produce a good amount of wine from Rhone varieties.

Anyone who has followed this site for long likely knows, I’m a big fan of Rhone-style wines.

The wine I’m reviewing today is one such wine, made from viognier. Pronounced, “vee-own-yay,” it’s a white Rhone variety known for producing full-bodied white wines that are quite aromatic. It’s somewhat similar to a chardonnay, but much more aromatic, and in my opinion more interesting. It can be produced in a couple different styles, with and without oak. This one is a non-oaked style, which results in a fresh, bright, fruit-driven wine with lively aromas.

Peach aromas are the first thing to strike me on the nose of this wine. It also offers grapefruit, pineapple and floral fragrances. The palate brings juicy peach, lemon and pineapple flavors with enough acidity to give it brightness and a creamy mouthfeel. The finish is fairly long, with lingering peach flavors and a touch of salinity.

This would be a fantastic wine to have with a Gruyere or Camembert cheese. Mmmmm… I think I need to run to the cheese shop!

Wine: Cline Family Cellars, North Coast Viognier
Varieties: Viognier
Vintage: 2018
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 87
Average price: $11.00
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.