Rated  on Oct 28, 2009

On first look, the Cuvaison seemed to have certain lightness to it for a Chard. Often a Chardonnay will have a deeper, more golden color to it and maybe it was the sunlight in the yard, but it had a nice bright sunny color.

For me, the nose spoke of honey. Other tasting notes call for more of a crème brûlée, custard, vanilla, caramel, crème fraiche or buttered apple aromas, so there is a definite creamy, rich sweetness there.  Tasting itself, the forward feel is that buttery sweeter goodness, but then the Cuvaison is surprisingly bright and crisp. It was very refreshing and not at all too heavy at all.  I found that the creaminess gave way to a pleasant citrus, mostly lemon, maybe a bit of grapefruit? It most certainly had a forward citrus fruit, though other tasting notes for this Chardonnay call for crisp apple, melon, caramel, Meyer lemon custard, pineapple. Bottom line: it’s got a nice light fruit feel to it with that buttery creamy balance.

After the fruit, the finish held on, but not too to long. Some oak as expected, but not at all too rough. It was much smoother than expected and very balanced.  It was all too pleasant, sitting in the crisp fall sun, drinking this bright and crisp wine with friends and talking about the sensations that were happening as we sipped.  If I had planned better, a tray of fruit, cheese and crackers would have made it complete, though a nice clam bake would have done just as well too!

All and all, one of the best Chardonnays I have had in a while and I am looking forward to drinking it again.  An added bonus? It’s one of our top wine picks this week and is one sale from it’s regular price. 

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