over-oaked white wines

Hello all!!

Well, I've had quite an education this past week. We drank three wines in a row that were not pleasant at all. The first was a rose from Italy. It tasted very "off" as in oxidized. Although I had not purchased this wine very long ago, it was definitely past it's prime. It had probably been stored improperly (too hot) at some point. Too bad, because I keep trying to find a rose that I'll like, but so far it hasn't happened. I'll not give any details about that particular wine, because it would be unfair to comment further. I really don't know what it would have tasted like.

The second wine was one of the wines from Total Wine in Atlanta. It was a 2006 Kings River Chardonnay from South Africa. It is described as having rich open aromas of fresh citrus and lime with hints of oatmeal and butterscotch. I was hoping for a nice buttery chardonnay. Instead the aromas were of wood chips, and the flavor was similar with hints of ... well, I can't remember anything except the woodiness. It was also unbalanced, with an unpleasant acidity that clashed with the oakiness. Perhaps a younger vintage would be better?

The third wine was marginally better. It was a 2007 Anselmi San Vincenzo from Italy. You know I have a weakness for all things Italian (starting with my husband). It was better balanced than the previous wine, but the oak overpowered what should have been a rather delicate white wine. Again, perhaps a younger vintage?

To be fair these wines were not the typical 2008 and 2009 vintages generally seen. Perhaps the age on these wines made them seem over-oaked when they were actually starting to oxidize. Anyway, although they were $8 and $9, I won't be trying them again.