MontGras Reserva 2009 Chardonnay

At the beginning of the summer, all my friends left DC. It was bizarre and I hated every minute they were gone. But finally! Chris and Natalie made it back from their respective foreign study programs, and I had both of them over to my apartment on Saturday afternoon for wine and avocado pie. The gossip flowed and it was glorious. It was like they'd never left at all.

The wine was left over from a dinner party the evening before. One of our guests brought this yummy Chardonnay from wine tasting at Paul's (the local liquor store). It was on sale for $10.99 and was sampled alongside other MontGras wines, almost all of which I also enjoyed.

The MontGras vineyards are in Colchagua, Chile.Colchagua is part of the Rapel Valley between the Andes and the Coastal Mountains, one of the most important agricultural areas in the country. The climate there is similar to the coasts of California and the Mediterranean, the Cape of Good Hope in S. Africa and the SW coast of Australia - basically all awesome places for wine making. The particular vines of MontGras were planted in 1993, the Chardonnay in a soil composed mostly of clay to hold in water allowing a long fruit ripening period. 40% of this wine was aged for 6 months in oak - 30% new oak barrels, 40% 2nd-use, and 30% 3rd use. The idea is that the newer the oak barrel, the stronger the oak flavor in the wine. So by splitting the vintage and only aging a small amount in new oak, and not letting some touch oak at all, the Chardonnay won't be overwhelmed and end up like the bottles of wood some people dread tasting when they hear "Chardonnay."

This wine was a total hit; I think 3 of 7 people who went to wine tasting actually brought this to the dinner party - and we tried 8 different wines at Paul's. The first sip tasted like pineapple or a yummy fruit cocktail, but the sweetness was balanced by just a little oaky warmth. There was no butter or smoke to the oak, so the wine tasted kind of tropical. But despite all the thick syrupy summer feelings this white invoked, it wasn't the least bit sickening, and it paired really well with the avocado pie I served Chris and Natalie. I think this is a perfect summer wine by itself, as an aperitif, or with desert. I'd also love to try the MontGras Carmenère, which they weren't sampling at wine tasting, but must be delicious.