*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from Rodney Strong.
I’m not a huge Chardonnay person. When I do like them, I tend to pick out the unoaked, stainless steel fermented ones. I’ve had just one to many chewing on a bunch of toothpicks covered in a stick of butter experiences to not be wary of oaked Chardonnay. However, a Chard where oak is used with restraint can be a thing of beauty and I love finding ones where the oak actually complements the juice rather overpowering it. That’s what I found in the 2007 Rodney Strong Chalk Hill Chardonnay, a light use of oak that let the fruit shine through, but gave the wine some structure. The wine clocked in at 14.3% alcohol by volume, had a real cork closure, and retails for around $16.
On the nose I found pear, apple, yellow apple, tropical notes, and peach. I loved the peach note. Have you ever picked peaches from the tree after they’ve been warming in the sun all afternoon? That’s what I smelled in this wine, sun kissed peach. In the mouth I got apple, pear, peach, spice, lemon edges, and a hint of apple pie a la mode. The fruit showed as crisp to me with just a touch of oak and good acidity. I served this with a creamy chicken casserole, which worked wonderfully.
Filed under: California, Chardonnay, White, Wine | 1 Comment »
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