EWS California Chardonnay vs. White Burgundy

Warwick Hotel, NYC
Tasted Wednesday, August 6, 2008 by Deb293 with 1,162 views

Introduction

Blind tasting of 13 wines. California showed extremely well, with the Ramey coming in second place, although several tables had corked pours which skewed the scoring. It probably would have been WOTN otherwise. No notes, but I did manage to taste some leftovers after the event. This is the only wine I tasted that I would consider purchasing (I already owned the Boillot, which is OK because it showed well). Marcassin turned out to be a major disappointment.

Flight 1 - Flight 1 (5 Notes)

  • 2005 Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

    Tasted blind. Pale yellow with hints of oak on the reticent nose. On the palate this has intense citrus but is a little hot on the finish. Tropical flavors are more pronounced with some time in the glass, as are the lemon and mineral aspects. When I got home I realized I had two bottles and am not disappointed. I think (hope) the wine was a little young to be showing its stuff.

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  • 2005 Newton Chardonnay Unfiltered 92 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Tasted blind. Pale lemon yellow with a subtle floral nose. Well integrated, with vanilla flavors and orange rind. Long finish with the oak a bit predominant.

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  • 2006 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Tasted blind. Pale yellow with faint nose of lemon grass. Long lemony and mineral finish. Classic Chablis, but not a blockbuster.

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  • 2004 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay Art Series 86 Points

    Australia, Western Australia, South West Australia, Margaret River

    Tasted blind. Medium yellow with intense oak and vanilla on the nose, with aromas of licorice and grappa. Almost "sweet" on the palate and a little hot on the finish. Unusual flavor profile, with tropical nuances on the finish, but over the top for me.

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  • 2002 Marcassin Chardonnay Marcassin Vineyard 86 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

    Tasted blind. Medium yellow; slightly maderized and hot on the finish. Flavors of banana and spice. A little medicinal. Like the man said, "The silver bag never lies." Scored one third place vote for the night. Kind of killed the mystique of Marcassin for me (maybe that's a good thing.)

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Flight 2 - Flight 2 (4 Notes)

  • 2005 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Chevalier-Montrachet 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

    Tasted blind. Medium yellow with an oaky "green" nose (as in grassy) with hints of spice. Full bodied and overtly fruity but balanced, with lots of lemon on the finish and a touch of heat. Intense and delicious, but not subtle. And not cheap either! Nice bottle, but questionable QPR.

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  • 2005 Pahlmeyer Chardonnay Napa Valley 87 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Tasted blind. Medium yellow with a vanilla/butterscotch nose. All butter and spice. Not that interesting; mostly wood and not a lot of fruit.

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  • 2005 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Charmes 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

    Tasted blind. Pale yellow with reticent mineral nose with hints of lemon. Light and lively with well balanced oak and a long finish. Grassy and nice.

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  • 2005 Kistler Chardonnay Vine Hill Vineyard 91 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

    Tasted blind. Medium yellow with nose of cat's pee, mineral, wet rocks and sulfer (one taster commented that the cure for gonorrhea had been found.) Very mineral driven with a long finish. Subtle honeysuckle flavors. Tastes like an "adult" wine; it's all grown up and I felt like I was supposed to love it but I didn't.

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Flight 3 - Flight 3 (4 Notes)

  • 2002 Marcassin Chardonnay Three Sisters Vineyard 89 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

    Tasted blind. Pale yellow with a very lemony nose. But it's all butterscotch/vanilla on the palate and not much fruit. Better than the Marcassin Vineyard of the same vintage though. A comment was made that Marcassin should be consumed while young; maybe this was past its prime. But for the price?

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  • 2005 Ramey Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard Flawed

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

    Our table got the corked bottle so I can only say that those who had the good bottle were hugely impressed. I tasted some after the event and will definitely try to find some of this as it was quite tasty, but I couldn't concentrate on the flavors and wrote no notes.

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  • 2002 Domaine Doudet Corton-Charlemagne 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

    Tasted blind. Light weight and well rounded with lemon and mineral flavors. Possible palate fatigue, as I was the only person in the room who liked this. Some called it "still Champagne" and found it overly acidic.

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  • 2005 Pierre Morey Bâtard-Montrachet 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

    Tasted blind. Spicy with a slightly medicinal nose of sage and herbs. Grassy but full flavored and quite enjoyable.

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