Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Wednesday, March 16, 2016 - Aged for 13 months in French of (30-40% new, the rest used).

Subtly greenish lemon yellow color. Somewhat woody and quite fruity nose that emphasizes fruit yet doesn't hide the oak treatment. Aromas of fresh peaches, some ripe red apples, a little bit of creamy oak, light vanilla tones and a zesty hint of citrus fruits. The wine is full-bodied, round and quite fresh on the palate with flavors of creamy oak, pineapple, some toasty sweet oak, a little bit of ripe peach-driven stone fruit, light mineral tones of wet stones and salt lick, a hint of nutty oak and a touch of vanilla. The wine is moderately high in acidity, but the richness of fruit and oak mask the structure, making the wine feel quite soft and supple on the palate. The finish is a bit more acid-drive with quite lengthy flavors of ripe red apples, creamy richness, some exotic fruits, a little bit of spicy, toasty oak, light buttery tones and a hint of vanilla.

I was enthusiastic to taste this wine since so many people had complimented the wine, it being so very sophisticated and Burgundian in style. Well, I must admit that it certainly wasn't the typically flabby, ponderous and over-oaked monster I always expect a Cali Chard to be like, but it wasn't particularly Burgundian either. The wine lacked the freshness, verve and sense of structure a good Chardonnay should exhibit. This was a relatively good effort for a new world Chardonnay, but no real competition against the best old world counterparts and nothing I'd swoon over. At least the wine showed some sense of aging potential, so hopefully it will turn out better with age. Feels expensive for the style at 50€.

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