Wooter notes from when it was offered.
Chardonnay, it’s not just for breakfast anymore! Well, today it was…
Never had an Arizona wine bef ore but I’m the adventurous type when it comes to food and drink so I was eager to taste this. For reference, I drink more reds than whites. As far as Chardonnay, I prefer those with “restrained” oak (vs un-oaked), Wellington is one of my favorites.
Straight out of the fridge at 7:30 a.m. The wine is rather pale for a Chardonnay. Not much nose at all. First sip is very crisp, more like a Pinot Grigio. I got some tart apple, DH gets citrus. Let it warm for just a few minutes. Ah, that’s better. Swirled a bit and stuck my nose down into the glass and got a hint of apple (DH says maybe pear, but I think that’s a stretch), but we agree there is not much aroma at all. Second sip (up just a few degrees), taste is more like a Chard, but a light one, with just the tiniest hint of oak, but still more tart apple than anything else. There was a bit of the “roundness” (I think that is the correct word for the mouth-feel I sense) that I’m used to in Chardonnay, but not a lot.
Overall we agree that it was an OK Chardonnay, and would be as happy with this many of the Chardonnays available locally for $12. It is probably better than most of the grocery store $10 bottles.
And my notes from that same offer in October.
I had this a couple of nights back with some lighter Cajun food and then finished it tonight while making dinner with a friend.
I was curious about the wine as I have never had a wine from Arizona and to sum it up I will just say I found it rather unremarkable. Neither interesting nor offensive. It went just fine with the Cajun food, a little more acid would have cut the heat of the food some but it didn’t hurt the meal in any way.
The wine is pale and somewhat of a muted straw color. It’s clear and free of sediment. The nose was not extremely expressive I got a bit of green apple and that’s about it. i didn’t get even a hint of oak on this although I noticed the specs shows some neutral oak was used.
On the tongue the wine is dry and surprisingly lighter bodied for a Chardonnay. No noticeable tannins and the overall balance seems good. The wine might have been better with a little more acid bite (crispness) however as the wine warmed the tartness seemed to rise with the temperature. I preferred the wine colder. For the finish I would put it at medium length. I did not detect any signs of MF but the winery can answer that question. I also did not detect any heat, the wine holds its alcohol well.
I really drink very little Chardonnay but I have had great examples of both good and bad glasses of it. This is neither.
Its a little bland and tough to describe but pleasant enough. At this woot price I would be happy with the wine. I don’t think I would seek it out but at this price but I do see the value.
