Rich White Wines - Glass

Full bodied due to malolcatic fermentation resulting in a creamier taste)

Included in this category are: Oaked Chardonnay, Marsanne, Semillon, and Viognier.

Food pairing: semi-soft mild goat and cow’s milk cheeses; fish with herbs; Chicken Breast, Turkey Breast, Pork Loin, Halibut, Trout, Cod, Sturgeon, Oily Flaky Fish, Atlantic Salmon, Lobster, Crab, Scallops, Shrimp, Clams, Oysters (unoaked); Yellow Squash, Peas, Zucchini, Asparagus, Sun Chokes, Seitan, White Mushrooms, Truffles, Chanterelles, Almonds (Pork Chop, Snapper, Crab roll, Scallops, veg. plate)

Grayson Chardonnay; 2015 Sonoma, CA

The 2013 Grayson Chardonnay is brilliantly ripe and shows bright, brisk acidity and good minerality with notes of pineapple and apricot. The palate offers green apple fruit with a crisp finish showing gentle hints of apple pie and vanilla flavors.

Additional information on chardonnays:

• Chardonnay tasting notes: lemon, apple, pear, pineapple, jackfruit, passionfruit, peach, fig, apple blossom, lemon zest, citrus peel, celery leaf, beeswax, lemon balm, honeysuckle, wet flint rocks, saline solution, vanilla bean, almond, jasmine.
• Oak flavors (added with oak aging): vanilla, baked tart, butter, pie crust, carmelized sugar, creme brulee, dill, coconut, praline.
• Medium low acidity (oaked warm climate) - medium high acidity (unoaked cool climate)
• Similar varities: Marsanne, Rousanne, Viognier, Semillon.
• The smell of vanilla, butter, coconut and dill are all attributes of oak-aging. However, the texture that some Chardonnays have that can be described as Oily, Creamy, Smooth or Waxy are from a special kind of fermentation (malolactic fermentation).
• Buttery chardonnays: Oaked Chardonnays are rich, full-bodied and have additional flavors of vanilla, butter and even caramel from the oak. A cool climate, buttery Chardonnay will have more citrus flavors versus a warm climate Chardonnay, which will have more.
  • Many oaked Chardonnays come from warmer climate wine regions.
  • Southern & Eastern Australia
  • Napa Valley, Paso Robles and Lake County in California
  • Mendoza Argentina
  • Burgundy, France (Puligny-Montrachet, Meursault and Mâconnais)
  • Puglia, Italy
• Unoaked chardonnays: Unoaked Chardonnay is far closer to the zesty style of Pinot Gris or Sauvignon Blanc. Chardonnay wine tends to have less ‘green flavors’ than Sauvignon Blanc. Depending on how ripe the grapes were when picked, the flavor ranges from lemon and green apple (less ripe) to pineapple and figs (very ripe).
  • Most unoaked Chardonnay is from cooler climate wine regions.
  • Sonoma Coast, California
  • Western Australia
  • Loire and Chablis, France
  • Colchagua and Casablanca Valley, Chile
  • Oregon

10 Span Chardonnay; 2015, CA

A balanced wine complemented by aromas of tropical fruit, subtle oak and butterscotch. On the palate it is a complex showstopper with flavors of stone fruit, fig, honey, and a touch of minerality.

Little James Basket Press White; 2014 Chateau de Saint Cosme, France

A Viognier / Sauvignon blend is not common, but the Little James Basket Press white offers from one side the freshness, aromatics and the acidity; and from the other side the ripeness, meatiness and depth. Hints of grapefruit, apricot, clementine. (This blend is a combination of what would be considered a rich white wine and a zesty white wine. Try it for yourself to have a better understanding of this wine and also for your own personal tasting notes).

This wine blends a viognier 55% (rich white wine) with a sauvignon 45% (zesty white wine)