2009 Picada 15 White Blend

An Estate grown and bottled White blend from the Neuquen region of Patagonia in Argentina. The blend is 55% Chardonnay, 40% Sauvignon Blanc and 5% Pinot Noir. Yes, Pinot Noir is a red grape, but they remove the grape skins right after crushing the grapes, so you get none of the red grape color. The wine is aged for 5 months in stainless steel tanks and the alcohol content is 14.3%.

A light wheat yellow with lime green highlights. The nose is grapefruit and oranges, a little green apple and cut flowers. It tastes of light apricot mixed with lemon/lime, then tart apple. The has good acidity, it’s there but it does not get in the way of the flavor. A very light tart apple finish, you can barely taste it, but it last and lasts.

Light, crisp, refreshing, cheap, just how a White blend should be. Would pair well with grilled seafood and light pasta dishes.

NV Seven Daughters White Blend

Non Vintage White Blend sourced from vineyards all over California. The blend is 26% Chardonnay, 25% French Colombard (a Bordeaux grape), 19% Symphony ( a new grape developed in California in the 40’s), 12% Orange Muscat (usually in dessert wines), 8% Riesling, 7% Sauvignon Blanc and 3% Gewurztraminer. Non Vintage means the grapes did not all come from one single vintage year, such as there could be grapes from 2009 and 2008 in the mix. The alcohol content is 13.5%.

The color is a light golden yellow. The nose is all citrus and flowers, grapefruit, orange and magnolia trees in full bloom.  A nice silky mouth feel. Tangerines and peaches, a touch of minerality and enough acidity to work well as a food wine. A lengthy tart lemony finish.

Very light bodied, crisp, refreshing and tasty. Perfect for sitting out on the balcony and watching the sun go down or pair with grilled shrimp and pasta.

2009 Passaggio New Generation Unoaked Chardonnay $13

Handmade Chardonnay by Winemaker Cynthia Cosco at the Crushpad wine facilities in Napa, Ca. 100% Chardonnay, no oak, no malolactic fermentation, minimal manipulation of the grapes. Alcohol content is 13.2%.

Light straw yellow in color. The nose is light citrus, tangerine, lime, grapefruit, a pretty scent, light and delicate. Lemon Chiffon at first, then tart apple, pink grapefruit and then dash of pear to soften the citrus. Nice acidity, you know it’s there but it does not intrude. A long lemon/lime and pear finish.

The very fresh fruit, light and refreshing, but plenty of body, a very well made Chardonnay. It has depth, some complexity and tastes great. Bring it to your favorite BYOB restaurant, the Passaggio would enhance fish and seafood meals.

you can find this wine at http://www.passaggiowines.com/

2007 Picket Fence Russian River Valley Chardonnay $9

100% Chardonnay sourced from two vineyards, River East Vineyard and Green Valley Vineyard, in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma, California. Fun Fact: 42% of the grapes grown in the Russian River Valley are Chardonnay, the cool climate provides ideal growing conditions. Partial Malolactic Fermentation and aged in 50% new French oak and 50% used oak barrels. The grapes are hand harvested and the alcohol content is a healthy 14.5%. If you notice, none of these things normally add up to 9 bucks, Pick Fence lists the wine for $19.99 on their website, but Trader Joe’s has it available for $8.99.

The color reminds me of fresh pineapple juice. A pretty nose, lemon, peach, honey suckle, with a hint of apple. The initial flavor is buttery citrus and apple, not tart, more smooth and mellow, then oak spice shows up in the mid palate. A long lemon/lime finish.

I go back and forth on whether I prefer oaked Chardonnay or unoaked Chardonnay, today I am on the unoaked side. The buttery lemon citrus and oak spice of the Picket Fence Chardonnay just does not do it for me. But if you are in the mood for this style of California Chard, this is a steal, Russian River Valley fruit, an award winning Winemaker (Don Van Staaveren) and a $9 price tag is hard to pass up.

2008 Domaine William Fevre Vaulorent Premier Cru Chablis $55

Ok, this is not anywhere near cheap, but Chablis is 100% Chardonnay and we have have been reviewing a bunch of Chards recently and Chablis is sort of Top of the Hill for Chardonnay. Chablis is the Northern most growing area in Burgundy. Most folks in the USA know Chablis from the jugs of Inglenook Chablis as seen in the cheap-o section of liquor stores, but for the rest of the world knows Chablis as premium Chardonnay.

The color is delicate, light straw yellow.  The nose is grapefruit, lemon and limes, flowers and slate dust, it is not the odor of fresh fruit, but more like a delicate citrus perfume. The first thing you notice that is different from New World Chardonnay from California, Chile and other Wine Countries, is the amount of acidity on the palate. Now, the Domaine William Fevre is a young wine and will continue to improve and become increasingly balanced over the next decade, but the acidity is felt on all parts of your mouth. The fruit is very fresh ripe citrus, grapefruit, lemon, tart Seville oranges along with a nice bit of minerality. A long, long citrus finish, you will taste the Domaine William Fevre ten minutes after your last sip.

Chablis is food wine and the large dose of acidity will integrate beautifully with seafood dishes. The 2008 vintage has received scores from 92 to 95 in the leading wine magazines.

So, how does a $50 Chablis stack up to the value priced Chardonnays we have been reviewing? Well, Chablis is an Old World Wine and the under $20 wines are all New World Wines, so they are made differently and to over simplify things, New World Wine = fruit forward and Old World Wine = more balance and less fruit. If you are dining at a high end seafood restaurant, get the Chablis, if you are in your backyard or local eatery get the value priced wine. The Grand Cru Chablis is a very good wine, but many of the value Chardonnay’s do what they do, very well, too. It’s a great time to be into wine, both the expensive wines and the inexpensive wines can bring real pleasure and enjoyment.

2008 Darby And Joan Chardonnay $10

Sourced from vineyards in the Riverland, Barossa Valley and Mclaren Vale regions of South Australia. Very small amounts of Riesling, Semillon and Verdelho were added to the Chardonnay, mainly to improve the acidity. The wine undergoes very little manipulation by the wine makers, wild fermentation, no malolactic fermentation, about 15% of the wine sees some aging in French oak barrels, the remainder is “on lees” for one year. The Darby and Joan Chardonnay was intended to be made as simply as possible, to showcase the Chardonnay grapes and not the winemakers bag of tricks.

Pale straw yellow in color. The nose is light melon, pear, a touch of vanilla and a hint of flowers, all very subtle. The flavor is velvety white peach and pear, a touch of acidity in the back of the palate, and then a decent light pear finish. The various textures and tastes are all well integrated, no one component leaps out.

An every day white wine, that can double as a food wine. Subtle and balanced, should drink well throuugh 2015.

2009 Winnefred Chardonnay $5

Another Trader Joe’s mystery wine. The grapes are sourced from the Central Coast of California, exactly where and by whom, we don’t know. 100% Chardonnay, 82% of the Chardonnay is aged in French oak barrel with 18% in sur-lie, which means the wine in kept in contact with the dead yeast and bits of grape residue, this gives the wine a rich, nutty flavor. So, there was somebody that thought these Chardonnay grapes were pretty good, you don’t use expensive French oak and do extra manipulation of the grapes to add complexity if you don’t think you are starting with quality grapes.

The color is a very light straw yellow. The nose is fresh peaches, apple, melon and flowers. Smooth silky mouth feel. The flavor is big and buttery, some tart green apple and citrus, a bit of the sur-lie nutty element and layers of stone fruit. The buttery flavors hit first then the tart flavors jump out. A nice light citrus finish.

A young wine, I think a year or so of aging in the bottle would really improve this Chardonnay. It drinks just fine right now, there is a lot to like about the Winnefred, but if you can put a couple of bottles away for awhile, I think you will have a whole lot more than a 5 dollar wine.

2008 Four Vines Naked Chardonnay $11

Four Vines usually makes Zinfandel and this is their one foray into White Wine. 100% Chardonnay sourced from three vineyards in the Cat Canyon area of Santa Barbara County, California. No oak and no malolactic fermentation, hence the “Naked” name. 13.9% alcohol content.

The color is light, clean, golden yellow. The aroma’s jump out of the glass, you don’t have to get your nose too close to the rim to get the full effect, fresh apple, apricot, pear and rose garden. Again, the taste is a huge too, sour green apple, citrus, and smooth pear. A nice dose of acidity that is tempered by the gobs of fresh fruit flavors. A long lengthy pear and lime finish.

A LARGE Chardonnay, there is not a subtle grape in the bottle. If you like your chards with loads of tart fruit, but still having crisp acidity, check out Four Vines Naked. Pair the Four Vines Naked Chardonnay with shrimp on the grill.

2009 Domaine de Brau “ Blanc de Brau” $11

An organic wine from the Languedoc Region of France. A blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Roussanne. The wine is unoaked and unfiltered.

Wine Fun Fact : Roussanne is a primarily a blending grape originally grown in the Cote du Rhone region of France. A finicky grape that is hard to grow. The grape has an herbal tea nose and can add a pear flavor.

Very light yellow in color with green highlights. The nose is extremely floral with citrus notes. The flavor is light and refreshing, crisp and clean, melon, white peach and pear with a light lemon taste around the edges. The finish is a lengthy lemon/lime.

A summer’s day in a bottle. would pair well with fish and chilled pasta salad.

2009 Arrogant Frog Lily Pad White Chardonnay

100% Chardonnay from the Languedoc region in the South of France. I was checking the website for this wine and I found that the producer, Les Domaines Paul Mas, is a very  large operation, they make 12,000,000 bottles of wine a year. The one key piece of information I found is that they export 96% of their wine. That makes sense, because I don’t think they are going to sell too many bottles of Arrogant Frog Wine to anyone in France. I doubt if any California winemaker is making Stupid American Wine. Back to the Lily Pad White, 10% of the grapes see malolactic fermentation and 35% the the grapes are aged 3 months in oak. Just enough to give the wine a lush mouth feel and a slightly buttery edge, but not enough manipulation to overpower the flavor of the wine.

It has a screw cap, something a little different for French wine. The color is clear, crisp, straw yellow. The nose is delicate and light, lilacs, buttered toast, melon and pear. The taste is surprisingly round and buttery, honeyed pear upfront that transitions into tart green apple. The apple continues on to the finish.

A very enjoyable, well priced, every day Chardonnay.

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