Hello all!! I'm still catching up some wines that we tried over the past couple of weeks. Tonight we actually had a Geyser Spring Pinot Gris. I believe we had this wine on Christmas Eve with all the seafood of the traditional Italian Christmas Eve dinner. It's a very nice wine, crisp and clean with good acidity, but also some pleasing fruitiness. It pairs well with seafood and is only about $9 a bottle at Ashes. Hence, it appears regularly at our table.
But on to the Chalone. We got this wine because it was mentioned on Gary Vaynerchuck's Wine Library TV. He was quite enthusiastic about it, so we wanted to give it a try. This wine came from Total Wines in Atlanta and was about $20 a bottle. Gary says this label is very consistent year to year. The color was light dandelion. The nose was of pear and white peach. It had bright acidity, crisp and clear, with flavors of pear, white peach, apple, and a little bit of nutmeg. Al picked up a touch of honey and almond on the finish. It was lightly oaked and nicely balanced. I described it as elegant and understated. Very nice.
Showing posts with label chardonnay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chardonnay. Show all posts
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Sunday, September 12, 2010
2007 Cateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Chardonnay
Hello!!
This was a rather disappointing wine. I roasted a chicken and served it with garlic mashed potatoes and sauteed snow peas. The meal was truly delicious, but the wine was disappointing. The tasting notes on this wine sounded very promising, and the wine was actually very true to the tasting notes. It just wasn't very well balanced. This wine couldn't decide what it wanted to be. The color ws a very pale straw. It was aromatically challenged with a faint nose of lemon and pineapple. The first thing that hit me on the taste was pineapple with lemon and maybe a hint of mango. It was very weak on the mid-palate. Al picked up a little minerality here, but to me it skipped right over the mid-palate. On the finish there was butterscotch with a bit of bitterness. From the tasting notes I expected a heavier, buttery chardonnay, but this wine just didn't deliver. It wasn't very good as a light fruity, tropical chardonnay either. It seemed unable to decide which style it was trying to emulate, "rich and buttery" or "tropical fruit". Frankly, it succeeded at neither. It wasn't terrible, but I certainly wouldn't get another bottle.
I do like both styles of chardonnay. I seem to be able to find the very lightly oaked fruity style fairly easily. Edna Valley is a good example. It's very refreshing and pleasant. It's easy to drink. But I also like the rich buttery chardonnays. I think they pair really well with roast chicken dishes like the one we had tonight. I suspect they are just hard to find in the less than $20 price range. I had a beautiful Pine Ridge Chardonnay about 6 months ago. I picked it up on clearance at McScrooge's, where it was originally priced at about $35 a bottle. Incidentally, McScrooge's has a big selection of chardonnays. It's almost too many to choose from. so, the search goes on for a good buttery chardonnay at an affordable price. I'll keep you posted.
This was a rather disappointing wine. I roasted a chicken and served it with garlic mashed potatoes and sauteed snow peas. The meal was truly delicious, but the wine was disappointing. The tasting notes on this wine sounded very promising, and the wine was actually very true to the tasting notes. It just wasn't very well balanced. This wine couldn't decide what it wanted to be. The color ws a very pale straw. It was aromatically challenged with a faint nose of lemon and pineapple. The first thing that hit me on the taste was pineapple with lemon and maybe a hint of mango. It was very weak on the mid-palate. Al picked up a little minerality here, but to me it skipped right over the mid-palate. On the finish there was butterscotch with a bit of bitterness. From the tasting notes I expected a heavier, buttery chardonnay, but this wine just didn't deliver. It wasn't very good as a light fruity, tropical chardonnay either. It seemed unable to decide which style it was trying to emulate, "rich and buttery" or "tropical fruit". Frankly, it succeeded at neither. It wasn't terrible, but I certainly wouldn't get another bottle.
I do like both styles of chardonnay. I seem to be able to find the very lightly oaked fruity style fairly easily. Edna Valley is a good example. It's very refreshing and pleasant. It's easy to drink. But I also like the rich buttery chardonnays. I think they pair really well with roast chicken dishes like the one we had tonight. I suspect they are just hard to find in the less than $20 price range. I had a beautiful Pine Ridge Chardonnay about 6 months ago. I picked it up on clearance at McScrooge's, where it was originally priced at about $35 a bottle. Incidentally, McScrooge's has a big selection of chardonnays. It's almost too many to choose from. so, the search goes on for a good buttery chardonnay at an affordable price. I'll keep you posted.
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