Toasting a year of blogging with Painter Bridge Chardonnay

I just noticed that this blog has been going for over a year now. Wow. Hard to believe. As I’m sure you’ve noticed, my work has kept me away from the keyboard lately, but I hope to catch up on some of my backlog of wine notes over the weekend.

I still have the final California Wine Festival notes to type up, and I just did an eight-wine Bordeaux tasting on Tuesday. And I have come across a few neat little finds that I want to share. Here’s one quick note to ‘wet’ your appetites for the next round of posts (hopefully by Monday).

Painter Bridge Chardonnay (2004)

This label is from J. Lohr, and it’s an excellent introduction to their wide range of wines. Sourced largely from Monterey County, this wine been fermented in stainless steel, so both the nose and mouth are very crisp. Interestingly enough, the Chardonnay is cut with a bit of Muscat Canelli (7.1%) and Viognier (2.4%). I usually don’t like dry Muscat (even in such small proportions), so I have to compliment the winemaker on their ability to disguise it. The overall effect of the blend is to make this a little richer than your average unoaked Chard.

This wine is lean, crisp, clean and it tastes like the world’s most perfectly ripe pear. Very tasty, although the finish is a bit short. For $13.99 at your local private wine store, this is worth it. The companion Zinfandel (cut with 23% Shiraz and 2% Petite Sirah) for the same price is also worth tracking down.