WBW#36: Naked Chardonnay

I can’t believe it’s Wine Blogging Wednesday already. In fact, I’d forgotten. Kevin remembered last night, thankfully, and we happened to have a bottle of "naked" Chardonnay chilling in our little whites fridge. But before I get to that, let me back up and let all my new readers (hello there!) know a little about Wine Blogging Wednesday.

Wine Blogging Wednesday came about 3 years ago this month. Lenn of Lenn Devours enjoyed the Is My Blog Burning? monthly cooking event that exists for foodie blogs. Why not wine? So Lenn got it in his head to organize this thing that has grown into a rather large, fun, monthly virtual tasting. Lenn also finally got it in his head to get some help and there is now a committee and a centralized web site. A different blog hosts the event each month, with a theme of their choosing. (Lenn, by the way, is the host for this month’s event.) Wine consumers around the globe (truly) send in links to blog posts or just email in reviews to the host, who then compiles a round-up. It’s a great chance to explore a bunch of new wine blogs, and often the theme gives you an excuse to try a new type of wine. Don’t let not having a blog keep you from participating.

On to this month’s theme: Naked (or unoaked) Chardonnay. This is so up my alley. I usually avoid Chardonnay because there is usually so much oak in the glass and butter on the finish that I feel like someone slapped some Country Crock on a tree. However, whenever I find a Chardonnay fermented in stainless steel, there’s a better than average chance I’ll buy it. That Chardonnay grape, when unearthed from the oak and the butter, is pretty darned good.

Back in May, I was at the Chateau Pomije wine bar with a girlfriend. She really liked oaky chards, and you already know how I feel about that. Tim, the owner, had the perfect solution and poured us both a glass of the 2004 Trevor Jones Virgin Chardonnay. My friend enjoyed it because it had enough of the spicy quality she usually gets from oak. I enjoyed it because it didn’t have oak but still had that full mouthfeel you want from a Chardonnay.  I bought a bottle and that, my friends, is what Kevin & I drank for this month’s foray into Wine Blogging Wednesday.

Full review after the jump.

2004 Trevor Jones Virgin Chardonnay
Kellermeister Wines
Barossa Valley, Australia
$18.99 (Chateau Pomije wine bar & store)

The wine is your typical Chardonnay color. The important thing here is that it’s not some weird color, which is why I comment on it. It’s gold. Nice. On the nose there are some peaches and a little earth. Kevin said it smelled like an "older" wine – more mature. Now, we’ve been drinking a lot of Sauvignon Blancs and Rieslings lately, so a Chardonnay is going to be pretty different in a lot of different ways.

This wine tasted like peaches and tangerines, with some spice. It had a nice mouthfeel – full and present. Kevin said that it went straight for the center of his tongue and he didn’t think it felt flabby on the sides. There was surprising depth to this wine, and while there was a touch of butter, Trevor didn’t dump in a vat of Country Crock either. It was light, and simply added to the smooth finish.

I paid $18.99 for this wine in Ohio (I’d probably pay slightly less in Kentucky) and it was worth it. I’d buy it again. This is what an unoaked Chardonnay should be – full-bodied and spicy. Definitely good naked.

For us, this wine rated a giant happy face. We quite rapidly finished the bottle.

Our rating: