The thing about California Chardonnay is that it comes in so many shapes and sizes. Some love it as big as it gets- a wine like Jack Spratt’s wife would like: bursting with fruit, lavishly oaked and a finish that makes it a meal in itself. Others profess love for a now-popular slimmer style, like Jack Spratt himself: lean, a little bit austere with more mineral than fruit.  Not to take anything away from either of those two styles but, to torture the nursery rhyme analogy further, with California Chardonnay, can’t we find one that fits like the best of the Three Bears’ beds, you know, just right?  In our opinion, Brian Talley’s Arroyo Grande Chardonnays fit that bill perfectly.  They are always impeccably balanced!  Sure there’s fruit- lots of it.  It’s quite distinctive, too, with hints of dried pineapple and citrus swirling in there with the perfect amount of pear and Golden Delicious apple.  There’s also a hint of oak spice- judiciously applied- but there nonetheless.  It’s nice:  Like that barest hint of curry in Mama Bear’s superb porridge.  But all that fruit and that bit of wood is also framed by a solid beam of life-giving natural acidity.  The acidity carries the fruit along and, keeps the wine lively and refreshing; it makes you want to go back to have another sip.  Talley’s Estate Chardonnay is the perfect California Chardonnay to serve well chilled in the warm weather as it has enough to character to stand up to the chill but, as it warms, you’ll become aware that it’s a damn serious wine, too.  Yep.  Just like that middle bed……just right.  And the nice thing about the Talleys’ Estate Chardonnay?  It’s super reasonably priced.  I remember selling this over a decade ago for $25 and thinking it was a heckuva deal.  The new label is excellent too.