The sun is literally scorching the earth in Delhi and we at Salt and Sandals, are still planning to drink wine. One wine that works perfectly during the summers is the Chardonnay. With it’s crisp acidity, citrus flavours and sometimes a creamy texture from the oak, it is a wine that is truly worth exploring. So when International Chardonnay Day rolled in around the corner and The Wine Company in Cyber Hub along with Lake Forest wines was organising a tasting session of Chardonnay, both from the Old World and New, we headed over to explore.
Old World Chardonnay
Now, one thing about Old World wines is their stoicism and their dryness. Just like the Chablis which comes from the Northern part of France, they haven’t changed the name although the whole world has switched to putting the name of the grape on the label. Minerality is quite an important character of the Chardonnay from the old world and it is aptly displayed in the P.Ferraud & Fils Chablis. Along with the notes of minerality, there is also a herby hint of capsicum and other fruits like peaches and green apples that we did enjoy.
As Ashish Dev Kapur starts regaling us with wine stories and anecdotes in between, he tells us about the story of Charlemagne. The king who lorded over the whole of Western Europe had a weakness for wine and him spilling quite a bit of red on his luscious flowing beard was quite common. Fed up, one of his queens actually popularised the planting of white grapes to tolerate her husband. Another one of the Old World Chardonnay that we tried out was the Italian Luca Bosio Chardonnay. Again a tremendous hit of minerality on the palate combined with some softer fruits this time. We combined a creamy Mushroom Rissoto and the chalkiness combined quite well with the minerality on the Old Worlds.
New World Chardonnay
Now competing with the Old World is not easy, but the new world wines have put up their own space with a slew of flavours and textures along with some residual sweetness too. From the stables of Robert Mondavi, the person who put Napa Valley on the wine map comes an Oaked Chardonnay from the Private Selection with a lovely creamy aftertaste. But the surprise for the evening was the Temalo Chardonnay ’16 from Chile. Quite a mouthful and bouquet of fruity flavours on the palate like peaches and green apple along with some sweetness, it was combined with a lovely mini vegetable pizza from the kitchens of The Wine Company.
Chardonnay is one wine that I definitely recommend in these summers. Tell me about your favorite White wine?
