Time To Look At Serious Chardonnay After A Huge Win

Time To Look At Serious Chardonnay After A Huge Win – Episode #574

November 10, 2008

The Jets romp the Rams and so Gary is excited and this is the perfect time for him to try some serious Chardonnay wines from California and see what he thinks!

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Comments on this episode(139) Leave a comment ›

“Good show. Too bad on the overoaking…. still not my thing either. …” by Dessert Wine Nerd
“My favorite chards this year have been sone acidic ones from Burgundy …” by yowens
View all 139 ›

Wines tasted in this episode:

2006 Truchard ChardonnaySonoma Chardonnay
2005 Chasseur Russian River ChardonnaySonoma Chardonnay
2006 Sbragia Chardonnay Gamble RanchNapa Chardonnay

Links mentioned in today’s episode.

The Thunder Cruise

139 Responses

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January 27, 2009

Dessert Wine Nerd
Good show. Too bad on the overoaking…. still not my thing either. QOTD: Probably one from Icicle Ridge Winery. Im big on them….yes theyre from my state!
December 20, 2008

yowens
My favorite chards this year have been sone acidic ones from Burgundy and Chablis.
December 5, 2008

AaronB
QOTD: I only had 2 chardonnays this year. They were both pretty good, so it wouldn’t be fair to categorize one as the best and the other the worst.
November 23, 2008

JayZee
QOTD: I don’t drink much Chardonnay – never really have to be honest. I don’t hate it, but it doesn’t ever thrill me. The Truchard sounds good though. I did have a 2004 Chateau Montelena that was decent, although still a little too buttery for my palate. I think the best one I had this year was the the Four Vines Naked Chardonnay.
November 21, 2008

Kristen
I like Truchard’s wines. They pretty much always produce quality.

QOTD: Although I’ve gotten away from chards to try other things, I think my favorite was 2003 Domaine Cristian Moreau Chablis 1er Cru. I love minerality! My least favorite? Yellowtail. Just not my style!
November 18, 2008

MattUD
Are we no longer changing the wine world? Haven’t had that much Chard this year, not enough to definitively pick a best and worst.
November 15, 2008

CraigG
My favorite Chard I had this year was a half bottle of the Jadot Batard Montrachet 2002. The stuff was just awesome.
I can’t say I remember a bad white that sticks out in my head, but I have a bad red. Opus One’s second wine, “Overture” 2003, had the most bitter tannins I have ever tasted. Worst wine I ever drank, ever. And I paid $35.00 for it when I went to Napa.
November 13, 2008

El Borracho
One of the best California chards for the money Cambria “Kathrines Vineyard”. Love chardonnay but good chard now days is very pricey and price does not reflect quality. Joseph Swan estate RRV and Cameron in Oregon great American chards but Burgundy is still the King and there’s nothing like Pouilly Fuise to put a smile on your face.
November 13, 2008

Bobo36
newton unfiltered – white label.

good show.
November 13, 2008

Todd
I like the 2007 Trinity Hill Hawkes bay… and Bret bros wines are very good… and the Concha y Toro terrunyo chard was a surprise.
November 12, 2008

Clemclone
QOTD Iron Horse makes both and un-oaked and an oaked chard but I love the oaked version. Very light on the oak and great acid. Runs about $22. I tasted a Firestone Vinyards from the Los Olivos area and it was like drinking popcorn butter. Start, mid, and finsh. Over oaked butter bomb!
November 12, 2008

David Dadekian
QOTD: I’ve been way, way, way off Chardonnay lately, but I think the last one I had that I liked was from Benziger.
November 12, 2008

B-727
Best: Montelena and Hansel
Worst: a hot, out of balance “Pacific Ridge”
Cheap reds — maybe okay. Cheap Chards, usually terrible (to me)
November 12, 2008

Nik
QOTD – For an American chardonnay, I really enjoyed the Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains 2005. For worldwide it is the Louis Carillon 2004 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières or a Louis Nie Meursault 2002.
November 12, 2008

Brian Barrick
Good to see California Chardonnay getting some respect on the show. I don’t drink many of them, but I do keep them in the rotation. My favorite is probably the Chalone Estate Chardonnay. Very Burgundian, with layers of fruit and minerals and just enough oak – everything in balance. Ages extremely well, too.

I’ll have to pay a visit to Truchard, that one sounds like a winner.
November 11, 2008

Claus
QOTD:
Best chard was a gorgeous, completely surprising Au Bon Climat 2007 Chardonnay at a wedding in Santa Barbara. I love that winery, but have only had the Pinot previously. Perfectly balanced, great with food as an aperitif (we had it as both.) At around $17, a great great value as well.
November 11, 2008

Shawn_944
Good, Solid Show GV!
November 11, 2008

SurfCityJay
Another great show… going to look for the Truchard tomorrow…

QOTD: Best = Melville Clone 76 INOX… Worst: some bad chard poured in Temecula… won’t say the winery…
November 11, 2008

Weston
QOTD: Hmm British Columbia has some nice Chards (whites in general especially Gwertz / Rieslings) The Therapy Chard is always a favorite and nice to fall back on but once the bottle has been opened for over an hr all the acid goes and its not that great.

The other one I had I loved was Pac Breeze 05 Chard it was like the Oak Monster Butterscotchness. delicious in my books
November 11, 2008

Rex
QOTD: Best chardonnay for me in 2008 was a Joseph Drouhin Beaune “Clos des Mouches” 2000 (still room to evolve but delicious right now). Not very far behind but a better QPR is the “Les Graviers” 2004 chardonnay from Domaine Andre et Mireille Tissot. Any Tissot wine is a must try.
November 11, 2008

unknownwine
oops, wasn’t done.

Visited Panther Creek in Oregon last week and had their 2007 Chard, unoaked and no malolactic treatment. It was yummy.
November 11, 2008

unknownwine
Gotta answer this one.

2005 Olivier Leflaive Deux Rives Chablis
November 11, 2008

Dan-o
Decent show – I am not part of the ABC crowd (Anything But Chardonnay). I love Chardonnays and I do tend to lean more toward the Chablis and Burgundian style – minerality and fruit in harmony.

QOTD – August Briggs Chard from CA, Corton-Charlemagne from Olivier Leflaive.
November 11, 2008

Sharon
Wow, I want you to have a nice anniversary and b-day, but I want the Pats to beat the Jets MORE. I mean, losing at home to our division co-leader would SUCK.
QOTD: Had an atrociously oaky Kendall-Jackson Reserve chard. Still extracting splinters from my mouth. My best chard I have yet to open – a 2006 Mount Eden Vineyards Chardonnay Wolff Vineyard. It’s gonna be a good ‘un !
November 11, 2008

Derek F.
Very very nice Gary, I really love Chard.

QOTD: I just went to a wine tasting last Saturday and found a naked Chard. from a local vineyard called “In The Buff” from Newport Vineyards, this wine blew my socks off!!