2001 Paraiso Chardonnay
This is another guest wine review by Katharine, aka PointedView. Many thanks to Katharine for her tasting notes!
Initial impressions:
Creamy pineapple notes balanced by vanilla (oak).
Nose:
Peach and vanilla, almost like peach cobbler topped with vanilla ice cream. My tasting partner said the same thing.
Color:
Pale honey.
Alcohol content:
13.2%
Tasting notes:
The thing I really liked about this wine was its balance. I am very tired of this new wave of California Chardonnay that's all acidity and fruit with no depth. I like a little oak with my Chardonnay. Not to the point where it's the only thing you taste, mind, but just for balance. This wine was barrel-aged for 11 months, and it had good balance between its tropical fruit and oak flavors.
Mouthfeel:
Full bodied; pleasantly rich, but not overpoweringly so, with a medium finish.
Impressions after being paired with food:
We had a lovely light summer meal of cherries, white grapes, chevre, crackers, salami, and gazpacho. In my experience, it's rare that a wine pairs well with gazpacho, but this one did, and the flavor was startlingly rich and fulfilling. It almost tasted like scotch with the gazpacho. Sometimes it's amazing how food and wine can change one another's character, and this was a dramatic transformation. Never would I have thought a Chardonnay could taste peaty and, well, scotch-like. I liked that, and I also liked the way it changed back when paired with the fruit and cheese.
Price:
$13.99 at The Fresh Market.
Would I buy it again:
Absolutely. I enjoyed this wine. It was refreshing to find a nicely balanced Chardonnay after several disappointing bottles from different producers. I don't know if the 2002 will be as tasty, but there's one way to find out.
Web site:
http://www.paraisovineyards.com/
-- Reviewed by Katharine, aka PointedView
Initial impressions:
Creamy pineapple notes balanced by vanilla (oak).
Nose:
Peach and vanilla, almost like peach cobbler topped with vanilla ice cream. My tasting partner said the same thing.
Color:
Pale honey.
Alcohol content:
13.2%
Tasting notes:
The thing I really liked about this wine was its balance. I am very tired of this new wave of California Chardonnay that's all acidity and fruit with no depth. I like a little oak with my Chardonnay. Not to the point where it's the only thing you taste, mind, but just for balance. This wine was barrel-aged for 11 months, and it had good balance between its tropical fruit and oak flavors.
Mouthfeel:
Full bodied; pleasantly rich, but not overpoweringly so, with a medium finish.
Impressions after being paired with food:
We had a lovely light summer meal of cherries, white grapes, chevre, crackers, salami, and gazpacho. In my experience, it's rare that a wine pairs well with gazpacho, but this one did, and the flavor was startlingly rich and fulfilling. It almost tasted like scotch with the gazpacho. Sometimes it's amazing how food and wine can change one another's character, and this was a dramatic transformation. Never would I have thought a Chardonnay could taste peaty and, well, scotch-like. I liked that, and I also liked the way it changed back when paired with the fruit and cheese.
Price:
$13.99 at The Fresh Market.
Would I buy it again:
Absolutely. I enjoyed this wine. It was refreshing to find a nicely balanced Chardonnay after several disappointing bottles from different producers. I don't know if the 2002 will be as tasty, but there's one way to find out.
Web site:
http://www.paraisovineyards.com/
-- Reviewed by Katharine, aka PointedView
1 Comments:
I really like your wine blog. Please check out my wine and winery related news and information wine blog. Thanks!
Post a Comment
<< Home