« April 11, 2006 | Main | April 04, 2006 »
Friday, April 07, 2006
Chardonnay
A
good French-style Chardonnay often found from other countries
Many wine geeks love to hate Chardonnay - ABC (Anything But Chardonnay)
is still heard and read amongst wine's condescendi. Although I've
personally fought for other grapes to be preferentially celebrated -
particularly Riesling - one of my favourite wine styles is Burgundian
Chardonnay.
In
Search of the Grail - A Worthy California Chardonnay
For the last few weeks I have been in search of a California Chardonnay
to get excited about. It seemed that I all of California was against
me, supplying no chardonnay’s worth uncorking.
Rosemount
Estate Diamond Label Chardonnay'04, Australia
A nice Australian Chardonnay, perfect to drink everyday with your lunch!
Gravepine
- April 6, 2006
Flat Roof Manor comes from the Uitkyk Estate and I enjoyed their crisp
Chenin Blanc wine and then the Chardonnay, the Shiraz and Merlot.
DCist.com
Linden's 1999 Chardonnay ($20) is all about perfect balance. The winery
also has a $10 cellar tasting that could feature a 2005 sauvignon
blanc, a 2001 single-vineyard chardonnay called "Hardscrabble," a 2004
cabernet franc, and a 2001 Bordeaux blend also called "Hardscrabble."
But DCist is cheap and wanted to visit another winery before the day
was through.
Red
Bicyclette Chardonnay'03, Vin de Pays d'Oc, Southern France
Table wine made from Chardonnay from Limooux Region in Southern France
produced by the well-known Gallo from California.
Russian
River Values...
Whenever I'm in search of great Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, I always
turn to wines produced from the Russian River area in Sonoma. As I
posted last week - Whole Foods across Texas has the 2002 Olivet Lane
Pinot Noir library edition and 2003 Olivet Lane Chardonnay on sale
right now.
2003
Cambria Chardonnay Katherine's Vineyard Santa Maria Valley
Cambria’s 2003 Chardonnay from the Santa Maria Valley (Southwestern
edge of California), will bring you that delicious fruit-creaminess
contrast that keeps you coming back to the reserves. An intelligent
value buy for serious Chardonnay drinkers, this one sells for $6.99, an
absurd steal for what you get.
'04
L'Angevin - Chardonnay - Heintz Vineyard - Is This What New World
Burgundy Tastes like?
Screw Kappa Napa Chardonnay 2004
A cure for bad chardonnay
I know, because for years that was me: a card-carrying member of the
ABC (Anything But Chardonnay) guild, hating chard for its big, buttery
disposition, and for flavors that had more in common with a Carmen
Miranda hat than a glass of white wine. It comes from France – in
particular from the northernmost patch of Burgundy, where vineyards are
planted almost exclusively in chardonnay.
Screw
Kappa Napa Chardonnay 2004
Fruity and full without the big butter one finds in Chardonnay that is
housed in vats with big chunks of burnt oak. As inexpensive Chardonnay
goes, this was fine to drink and fine to incorporate in the sauce.
Wine
of the week
Italian chardonnay is not a category of wine I would endorse, but this
wine is a brilliant exception at a remarkable price.
Cullen
Chardonnay 2002
The disclaimer on this is that the grapes in view are sauvignon blanc
grapes and not chardonnay.
De
Bortoli Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2002
Pleasing chardonnay structure - an essence like, fatty element and then
a focused tight finish with grapefruit and a slightly metallic,
phenolic conclusion.
Treat
yourself to esprit de J. Lohr
In Monterey, with a cooler growing climate well-suited to whites, the
winery is making a benchmark chardonnay, the 2004 J. Lohr Riverstone
Chardonnay ($14), the third largest-selling chardonnay in the United
States in the $10-$14 price range. After tasting the Riverstone, sip
the 2004 J. Lohr Arroyo Vista Chardonnay ($25), a reserve wine.
Chehalem
Inox Chardonnay Willamette Valley 2004
Chehalem Inox Chardonnay 2004 was sourced from Chehalem estate
vineyards (54% Stoller, 27% Coral Creek, and 1% Ridgecrest) and
purchased from Eola Hills vineyards (12% Bethel Heights and 7%
Temperance Hill).
Jean
Bousquet Mendoza Chardonnay 2005
Jean Bousquet Chardonnay 2005 is organically grown, sourced from a
4000' elevation vineyard, in Tupungato, Mendoza, Argentina. Tropical
aromas of pineapple, ginger, peaches and cream introduce a light
bodied, tart, skinny Chardonnay.
newswire.co.nz
The older barrels provide a distinct barrel fermentation character but
still allow emphasis on the ripe peach and melon aromas of the
Chardonnay fruit. This year’s Village Chardonnay features very
attractive lifted fruit aromas, along with a touch of nuttiness: the
hint of hazelnut that is so typical of Chardonnay.
'03
Kistler - Vine Hill- Chardonnay - New World, Old Style Burgundy, White
That is...
BJI: Oodles of Wines Edition
Chardonnay,
the great white, is back with a bite
'Chardonnay, stop picking your nose,' a woman on the tube scolded her
child the other day. But Chardonnay consistently makes better wines in
a wider range of climates than any other white variety.
Savvy
Living -Apr. 6, 2006
A striking light gold in the glass, Sherwood House 2002 Chardonnay
($20) offers the ideal alternative to heavy chardonnay from California.
My
Round: Wines of note from Chile
Some of the nicest surprises come in grape varieties and blends that
one doesn't usually associate with Chile, such as the Anakena Ona
Riesling Viognier Chardonnay 2005 (around 8.99).
Vancouver
Courier
Less oak, less alcohol make Chablis sing ... except for one other
departure: this meal is based entirely on white wines exploring the
steely and complex minerality of Chablis (Chardonnay), paired by La ...
Chillin’
Grillin’
However, there are a few bulls-eye food and wine matches out there–like
a steel fermented, unoaked Chardonnay and grilled corn on the cob. Good
choices would be Wishing Tree Unoaked Chardonnay from Australia
($9.95), California’s Callaway Coastal Chardonnay ($5.95) or a new wine
I recently enjoyed, Chehalem INOX Chardonnay ($17.95) from Oregon’s
Willamette Valley.
Thirsting
for a twist
For a white with flesh and freshness, try the 2004 Arrogant Frog Ribet
White Languedoc Chardonnay-Viognier ($9) from southern France. A blend
of 60 percent Chardonnay and 40 percent Viognier, it's dry, full-bodied
and smooth with freesia and cinnamon aromas and tropical fruit flavors.
Penfolds
Bin 311 Chardonnay 2005
Santa
Rita Chardonnay 120
Back when Todd and I were newlyweds living in a two room apartment in
Connecticut, I'd spend the hour waiting for him to get home sipping
Chardonnay and playing "Strike a Match" on Boxerjam.com. So to this
day, when I drink a South American Chardonnay, I hear computer game
show music.
Leeuwin
Art Series Chardonnay 1999
Winners?
Spanish and Portuguese Chardonnay's
Looking at the Chardonnay du Monde contest I find an even narrower
criterion - wines only made from the Chardonnay grape! The goal of this
international Chardonnay competition is to reward the best wines on the
basis of their intrinsic quality.
Voyager
Estate Chardonnay 2001
McWilliams
Clarsac
To their credit, McWilliams make plenty of great wines, so don't waste
you $2.69 on each of these, go and buy some of their "real" wines, like
the hanwood chardonnay reviewed previously.
2004
Chalone Vineyard Monterey County Chardonnay
Anyway, there's a brief passage about trying to start a culinary arts
program at Antioch College in Ohio in 1980, and he mentions the
committee going through a case of Dick Graff's Chalone Chardonnay,
Graff being the founder and chairman of Chalone Vineyard. A few hours
after reading that, I was doing the regular trip from grocery story to
wine shop, and while browsing around the racks I came across the 2004
Chalone Vineyard Monterey County Chardonnay.
Iron
Horse - 2002 Chardonnay
A bottle of the 2002 Iron Horse Chardonnay, which hails from the Green
Valley region in Sonoma County. The Green Valley lies within the
better-known Russian River Valley, and is home to some of Californias
best pinot noir and chardonnay wines.
Rodney
Strong Chalk Hill Chardonnay (Sonoma County) 2003*
Washington
vineyards find success with the right grapes
Hedges CMS White 2004 ($10): This replaced the winery's standby blend
of chardonnay and sauvignon blanc, adding marsanne (a Rhone grape) to
the mix.
Exhibition of
Victorian Winemakers 2006 - Wine Notes Part 2
Mornington Estate Chardonnay 2002 - Melon, citrus and a touch of steel
and butter. Yarra Hills Chardonnay 2003 - I found this to be too oaky,
buttery and lacking in balance.
Early Vintage
for Tasmania
Some Tasmanian vineyards are already well into vintage 2006 picking
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay for sparkling wines.
Ferrari
Carano Sonoma Fumé Blanc 2005
The newly released 2005 is elegant, pretty, and a nice alternative to
Chardonnay.
Wine:
Horton Vineyards Sparkling Viognier Revie...
Review: This sparkling wine is a blend of 80% Viognier and 20%
Chardonnay, It was cellared in 1998 and degorged in 2001.