The Cellar, Then and Now: Chardonnays

Hello dear reader.  It has become apparent to me, looking back over my previous posts, that I have been shamefully neglecting to interject a bit about wine now and then.  In the spirit of rectifying this oversight, I’m starting a new segment, to be posted at random (of course!) entitled “The Cellar, Then and Now,” which will focus on some of the great wines of our past (worthy enough to save the bottles as decoration) as well as what is in our cellar now.  Our acceptable price ranges have gone up and down through the years, as circumstances of finance act like the tides, so you’ll find a bit of variety here. 

I should definitely make the disclaimer that I am by no means a wine snob.  In the past we would hold blind wine tastings with friends in order to cultivate our own palates and preferences.  This is when we discovered that sometimes the wine we liked the best was not the most expensive of the lot nor even the most acclaimed, how refreshing!  The world of wine is still a vast undiscovered country to me, and I would always welcome hearing your thoughts if you’ve tried any of the wines that I post on.  But for now,

¡Salud! Ура! Prost! Cheers!  Santé !  Felicidades!  Noroc!  Στην υγειά μας!

PS-I’m relying on google translation for these, I hope they are right, if not, please pardon the mistake, I mean no offense.

Chardonnays

I love Chardonnays.  I am a bit picky about them though.  I like a nice weight to it, a bit of oak, smooth and rounded at the edges, not too much citrus, with a nice medium finish.  Here’s one that I stumbled across years ago in a great wine shop on the far edge of town

Empty :(

Bohemian Highway, Chardonnay, 2007 (California)

This was a winner at first sip for me, smooth, rich, buttery, oaky, full bodied, fresh, eminently drinkable all on its own, but to be fair, I gave myself half the bottle.  Just to be sure.  The winery says this about their product: "This is a lightly oaked, fruit driven wine with enticing pear and apple flavors and just a touch of refreshing citrus. Uncork, unwind and let the journey begin."  I was so impressed with Bohemian Highway’s Chardonnay, priced at $5 a bottle (WOW!), I took it upon myself to test the rest of their varietals.  In the end, their Pino Noir was excellent as well, but the Chardonnay was truly exceptional at that price.  Sadly the magic was in the 2007 vintage, California had a wonderful year for Chardonnay that year, not too much heat, and the 2008 was lacking.

Notes of interest (provided by the winery):

Taste--apple, pear, peach, apricot, lemon, lime, orange, pineapple, kiwi, butter, cream, and vanilla

Nose--apple, pear, peach, apricot, lemon, lime, orange, pineapple, kiwi, butter, cream, and vanilla

In the cellar now…and looking forward to

Chateau Montelena, Chardonnay, 2007 (California)

We really enjoyed the movie “Bottle Shock,” but that wasn’t the reason behind acquiring this bottle of wine, although it does give it a novelty value in my book.  It was my birthday, and I love Chardonnays, so this was a gift from the mister, who thought it would be a good bet based on what he had learned.  Here is what our experts say:

90 points Robert Parker: "The 2007 Chardonnay offers up aromas of white peaches, apple skins, and crushed rocks presented in a fresh, medium-bodied, dry, zesty format.

Rated: 91 by Stephen Tanzer, May/Jun 09

Bright yellow. Musky peach, pear and apple fruit aromas and flavors are complicated by flowers and herbs. Concentration and precise, with a dusty impression of extract and very good length. Quite strong for this no-malo chardonnay. Bo Barrett is now vinifying with a higher percentage of whole clusters and getting less bitterness as a result. "So now we don't need as much new oak to compensate," he noted, these wines will get better and better for 20 to 25 years.

This bottle may not make it that long, I have only a certain amount of patience, but we shall see…