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woman on wine with amy reileyAmerican Chardonnay is back! (No, it never left, but it did go through a very dark time of over-made wines with barrel flavor and sweetness that could cause tooth decay.) Over the past few months I’ve tried about a dozen Chardonnays with elegance and balance, qualities we’ve come to know from the Burgundian renditions of the grape, but which seemed to all but vanish from the home front during the dark 1990’s. Here are a few of the highlights of my recent Chardonnay odyssey. |
Chehelem
2004 Ian’s Reserve Chardonnay
This wine is the epitome of restraint. With great acidity, it offers nutty, yeasty notes and delicate lemon and lime blossoms and zest. Oiily on the palate, the wine has appealing weight and a clean, citrus finish.
Sierra Madre
2007 Chardonnay
Although this is a rich and textured wine, the influence of the winemaker was not made with a heavy hand. The wine is still bright with fruit flavors of apple and Asian pear in prominence.
Davis Bynum
2007 Russian River Valley Chardonnay
Although that slightly popcorn-y hint of malolactic is obvious on the nose, the wine fills the palate with the delightfully sweet flavors of tropical fruits and a hint of minerality on its fresh, clean finish.
Benziger
2007 Sangiacomo Vineyard Chardonnay
A wine made from what is probably my very favorite American vineyard (in Northern CA’s Carneros region), the Benziger exhibits subtly feral, sensual, musky aroma and flavors, layered with toasty oak, apple and sweet white peach.
Pfendler
2007 Chardonnay
This is another one of those deliciously sexy Carneros Chards with layered flavors of honey, almond, crisp apple and quince and that wonderful quality of making your mouth water for more.
