Land is expensive, and so vineyards are farmed to perfection to maximize that value. Ditto real estatebig houses, luxury hotels, and fancy restaurants abound. Everyone knows that finding value is the hard part.

So to craft a Chardonnay that delivers a signature Napa Valley experiencebig fruit, luxurious texture, a patina of oakat an everyday price is noteworthy. But Beringers 92-point knockout should be no surprise.

The iconic winery has been making some of the most acclaimed wines in Napa Valley since just after the end of the Civil War, and has the vineyards to show for it. Thats translated into unmatched success over the nearly 150 yearssome of the most acclaimed high-end wines in Napa, plus bottlings that massively over-deliver at lower prices, like this one.

Founded in 1875 with Jacob Beringers purchase of 215 acres in St. Helena, Beringer is Californias longest continuously operating winery, and theyre often adding to their bona fides as a Napa Valley trailblazer: Theirs was among the first gravity-fed wineries in the state, the first to offer winery tours, and the first winery to have both a red and a white wine named Wine Spectators #1 Wine of the Year.

While the blueprint for Beringers Chardonnay success may have been drawn by legendary winemakers Myron Nightingale and Ed Sbragia, who began barrel-fermenting their Chardonnay in French oak way back in 1977, theyve never made better wines than they do today.

This 2018 is just more proof of the qualitative tear that Beringer has been on since Mark Beringer, great-great-grandson of one of the founding brothers, came back to the family business. When Mark took the helm as winemaker in 2015, he immediately wrote himself into the winerys legacy with his dazzlingly rich Chards.

This shows off his signature style, with aromas of Golden Delicious apples leaping out of the glass, framed by hints of white flowers and a ripple of hazelnut praline. Theres plenty of richness on the palate, as tropical and citrus fruit compete for your attention, dressed with butterscotch and spice from the French oak.

This is a standout bottling for the iconic propertyone thats destined to be a weeknight staple for anyone who loves full-bodied Chard. Stock up while you can.